Prehabilitation Can Reduce Pain Before and After Surgery

Physical therapy is common after surgery to strengthen joints and restore mobility. However, pre-surgery exercise and education, known as prehabilitation, are also important for optimum results. According to new research published in JAMA Network Open, prehabilitation can significantly improve outcomes for patients undergoing orthopedic surgery.

Why Is Prehabilitation Necessary?

An aging population, complicated by the global pandemic, resulted in delays in surgical procedures for millions of Americans. Patients are waiting much longer for routine operations, which can negatively impact them mentally and physically. Prehabilitation can help maintain joint strength and function and manage pain while patients wait for their orthopedic surgery.

Prehabiliation Improves Pre-Surgical Quality of Life

A group of researchers from Anglia Ruskin University (ARU), Addenbrooke’s — Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (CUH) and Western University in Ontario, Canada, conducted a meta-analysis of 48 clinical trials. The trials used prehabilitation methods like exercise, acupuncture and pain management among patients who were preparing for orthopedic surgery.

The study found the following:

• Strong evidence that prehabilitation helped reduce pre-operative pain for patients awaiting lower back surgery
• Moderate evidence that prehabilitation helped improve muscle strength and function for patients waiting for total knee replacement
• Moderate evidence that prehabilitation improved hip muscle strength and health-related quality of life for patients waiting for total hip replacement

Prehabilitation Helps with Post-Operative Recovery

Prehabilitation also helped with surgery recovery. The study found that patients who prehabilitated had improved joint function in the short and medium term compared with patients who did not prehabilitate. The benefits of prehabilitation were particularly favorable at six-week post-operative visits for knee replacement patients and at six-month post-operative visits for lower back surgery patients.

“This study stemmed out of a need to find the best ways to prepare orthopedic patients prior to surgery and prevent them from further deconditioning,” said lead author Anuj Punnoose, ARU PhD candidate and clinical specialist physiotherapist at CUH. “Furthermore, any prehabilitation program should ideally be delivered for at least four to six weeks prior to the surgical intervention and twice a week for optimum results. Health services looking at developing such programs could utilize recommendations from this study” (Medical Xpress).

Find an Orthopedist Near You to Manage Joint Pain

Are you considering total joint replacement? Talk to your orthopedist about prehabilitation programs so you can maintain joint function and manage pain before your surgery. Are you looking for a board-certified orthopedic surgeon? Our orthopedic centers are nationwide, and our physicians accept new patients. Call today to make an appointment.