The effect of transcutaneous application of carbon dioxide on postoperative pain relief after total knee arthroplasty

2017 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 15K19997
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Orthopaedic surgery
• Research Institution: Kobe University
• Principal Investigator: Takayama Koji 神戸大学, 医学部附属病院, 特命助教 (80546490)
• Project Period (FY): 2015-04-01 – 2018-03-31
• Keywords: 人工膝関節置換術 / 炭酸ガス経皮吸収療法 / リハビリテーション

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of transcutaneous CO2 application on postoperative pain relief after total knee arthroplasty (TKA). The transcutaneous CO2 application was started from the seven days after surgery and CO2 application was performed for 20 minutes for 5 days. Visual analog scale (VAS) for pain was examined before and after CO2 application. On 16 days after surgery, pain VAS, knee range of motion, and quadriceps muscle strength were compared with historical control group. The pain VAS after CO2 application was significantly decreased compared with those before application. This finding indicated that the transcutaneous CO2 application might be an alternative treatment for pain relief after TKA. On the other hand, there was no significant difference between CO2 application group and control group in pain VAS, knee range of motion, and quadriceps muscle strength on 16 days after surgery. For clinical applications, further study is required.

Free Research Field

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