Patient-Controlled Analgesia After Shoulder Surgery

The shoulder joint has some specific properties in the human body. It has adjusted to the mechanical demands of a vertical body position more than any other joint. The shoulder has the largest motion range of all joints in the human body. In addition to the shoulder is exposed cosmetically, particularly in women. Extensive surgical exposures of the shoulder joint were commonly used when shoulder surgery first began. With the advent of arthroscopy, shoulder surgery has become even less invasive. The principles of surgical procedures to the shoulder, however, have largely remained unchanged. Shoulder surgery is often associated with severe postoperative pain, particularly within the first 48 hours. Postoperative pain after shoulder surgery can cause patient discomfort as well as compromise functional recovery. Adequate pain relief after shoulder surgery is necessary both for the comfort of the patients and for an early use of rehabilitation exercise. The management of acute postoperative pain after shoulder surgery has been performed using conventional nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), local injection of analgesics, i.v. patient-controlled analgesia (PCA), continuous intrabursal infusion of analgesics, and patient-controlled interscalene or subacromial analgesia [110].