28 Jun Check Pain Management Off Your List of Foot and Ankle Surgery Worries
With any surgery the thought of post-operative pain is a concern. Depending on the person, your mind could start racing anywhere from the seriousness of your condition, to the procedure itself, to out-of-pocket surgical costs or the required downtime. However, when it comes to foot and ankle surgery, there is the inevitable question: How bad will it hurt afterward?
Even if you have a high tolerance for pain, the unfortunate truth is that pain can accompany the healing process following any surgery. The surgeons at Strash Foot and Ankle Care understand that with proper care, healing after foot and ankle surgery can be more comfortable than people might expect.
There are a large variety of highly effective pain medications and fear of postoperative pain should be the last deterrent keeping patients from having foot or ankle surgery. Our patients can take comfort in knowing that our surgeons have an equally vested interest in keeping patients comfortable so their surgical experience is positive and they have a speedy recovery.
Our patients typically receive a local, long-lasting anesthetic to the surgical site immediately following surgery, which significantly decreases pain. Also, in today’s healthcare climate where efforts to reduce -prescription drug addiction are at an all-time high, there are stronger anti-inflammatory medications available, which can eliminate the need for pain relievers containing narcotics.
In addition to long-acting local anesthetics and oral medication, a tried and true method in controlling pain following foot or ankle surgery is to apply rest, ice, compression and elevation (RICE). Using the RICE method reduces swelling in the surgical area and is always recommended by Dr. Strash and Dr. Bills. By reducing swelling, inflammation is minimized, which in a large part then lowers pain to the surgical area.
Be sure to talk to your surgeon at Strash Foot and Ankle Care before your surgical procedure to determine how much pain you can expect and the plan of action for managing your postoperative pain. Exparel is a wonderful medication we use on our surgical patients. With this local anesthetic patients take little or no opioid medications after surgery and as a result our patients have a much more pleasant and pain-free post-operative experience. When you schedule surgery ask your surgeon about Exparel and for more information on Exparel see: https://www.pacira.com/products/exparel.
Bottom line, in this day and age, it’s not necessary to live in pain (or have a great deal of pain after surgery), especially in your feet and ankles. If you’re experiencing chronic pain that’s precluding you from participating in your daily activities or sport, give us a call, today – we are committed to helping you put your best foot forward, again.