Pain Medicine: Acute and Persistent Postoperative Pain after Breast Surgery

Nearly 60% of women experienced severe pain following breast cancer surgery in this retrospective study. Such pain remained for nearly 1 in 4 women at 1 month after surgery, and nearly 1 in 10 at 6-12 months following surgery.

Non-White race, obesity, and high PACU opioid use were correlated with increased pain at 1 month. Systolic hypertension and older age were correlated with lower pain scores.

There is no mention of the role of regional anesthesia in this study.

Acute and Persistent Postoperative Pain after Breast Surgery

Karamarie Fecho, PhD,* Natalie R. Miller, BS,* Sarah A. Merritt, MD,* Nancy Klauber-DeMore, MD, † C. Scott Hultman, MD, ‡ and William S. Blau, MD, PhD*

*Department of Anesthesiology and Divisions of † Surgical Oncology and ‡ Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Department of Surgery, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA

ABSTRACT
Objectives. This study’s primary aim was to determine levels of acute and persistent postoperative pain and the incidence of severe postoperative pain after mastectomy. A secondary aim was to examine factors associated with postoperative pain.

Design. A retrospective cohort study of 196 female breast surgery subjects was conducted. Data were collected on: numerical rating scale (NRS) pain scores in the Post Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU) and at 1 month and 6–12 months postoperative; age; race; insurance; obesity; radiotherapy; chemotherapy; hypertension; anesthesia care time; and intraoperative and PACU opioid use. Severe postoperative pain was defined as NAS ≥ 5. Data were analyzed using chi square, Fisher’s exact test or analysis of variance, with α = 0.05.

Results. PACU pain and the incidence of severe PACU pain increased with surgical complexity (P < 0.005). PACU pain scores averaged 4.71 ± 0.24 and 57.7% of subjects experienced severe pain. Postoperative pain scores at 1 or 6–12 months did not vary by surgical complexity and averaged 2.21 ± 0.32 and 0.74 ± 0.22, respectively. Severe postoperative pain was experienced by 22.1% of subjects at 1 month and 8.2% of subjects at 6–12 months. Older age and systolic hypertension were associated with less PACU pain. Non-White race, obesity, and high PACU opioid use were associated with greater postoperative pain at 1 month. Non-White people also had greater postoperative pain at 6–12 months.

Conclusions. The results suggest that nearly 60% of breast surgery patients experience severe acute postoperative pain, with severe pain persisting for 6–12 months in almost 10% of patients.

DIGITAL OBJECT IDENTIFIER (DOI)
10.1111/j.1526-4637.2009.00611.x About DOI

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