Acute pain during and immediately after total knee arthroplasty (TKA) can be well controlled by spinal anesthesia, local infiltration analgesia, and peripheral nerve blocks; this enables early or fast-track rehabilitation. However, about half of patients have clinically significant pain in the following weeks. Active movements and rehabilitation of joint function, muscle strength, and ability to maintain balance and prevent falls all become more difficult when the joint is painful on movement. Intensive analgesic and antihyperalgesic treatment during the first few weeks after TKA surgery may reduce the risk of chronic pain after this operation, which is itself intended to remove the patient's chronic osteoarthritis pain. Spinal cord stimulation may be an effective option for patients with mainly neuropathic pain after TKA surgery.
Keywords: arthroplasty; infiltration analgesia; knee; nerve blocks; pain; postoperative; spinal anesthesia.