Electrotherapy and acupuncture linked with decreased, delayed opioid use after TKA
Tedesco D, et al. JAMA Surg. 2017;doi:10.1001/jamasurg.2017.2872.

August 16, 2017

Investigators found electrotherapy and acupuncture after total knee arthroplasty correlated with a decrease in and later use of opioids.

Researchers performed a systematic review and found 5,509 studies of nonpharmacological interventions for postoperative pain following total knee arthroplasty. Of these studies, 39 randomized controlled trials were included in the meta-analysis. Data from the articles were assessed by two reviewers for risk of bias. The main outcomes evaluated were postoperative pain and consumption of opioids and analgesics.