Shoulder surgery new testing ground for opioid alternatives

Editor's Note

As part of the drive to reduce opioid use, rotator-cuff repairs are becoming a testing ground for alternative approaches to pain management, the May 23 Wall Street Journal reports.

Because rotator-cuff surgery is one of the most painful procedures to recover from, physicians hope that if alternative painkilling techniques are effective with this procedure, they will be more widely adopted.

The techniques include injecting single-dose regional nerve blocks that last 24 hours and sending patients home with peripheral catheters that deliver anesthetic to the surgical area for 2 to 3 days.

A common shoulder surgery has become a testing ground for some novel painkilling techniques as doctors seek to reduce the use of prescription narcotics known as opioids. Rotator-cuff surgery, which aims to repair a shoulder tendon that can get torn from sports, a bad fall or simple wear and tear, is among the most painful for patients to recover from.