Using all tools to ease pain after surgery and enhance recovery

Surgeons at Orlando Health are expanding the medications used after surgery to benefit patients during their recovery period.

“We have multiple options in our toolbox for treating surgical pain,” says Dr. Luke Elms, a board-certified general surgeon with Orlando Health Medical Group Surgery.

“The addition of several nonopioid pain medications can assist in achieving good pain control. This combination can result in less need for prescription opioids, which are still used as needed,” says Dr. Elms. “The benefit is a reduction in the side effects of opioids like nausea, vomiting, constipation and fatigue, which can slow recovery.”

However, not every patient or procedure qualifies for this strategy. The goal is to provide compassionate pain control and opioids are still used when needed. These prescription opioids differ from the illegal pills containing fentanyl that have contributed to a recent spike in overdose deaths despite drastically reduced opioid prescribing.

The Orlando Health program combines multiple medications to help with pain control. The combination of nonopioid medications includes:

• Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS), such as ibuprofen or celecoxib

• The common pain reliever acetaminophen

• Muscle relaxers, which reduce muscle tension, decreasing pain

• Nerve blocks, which can take the edge off pain for up to four days after surgery, helping patients during the hardest period of discomfort

A recent study commissioned by Orlando Health showed nearly twothirds of people would try a nonopioid pain management plan, but 65 percent of patients were more concerned about pain control than addiction.

“It is important to provide compassionate pain control around the time of surgery, and our programs seeks to use all available tools in this effort,” Dr. Elms says.