The comparison of length of stay and pain medication needs in total knee replacement surgical patients who received femoral nerve blocks versus those who did not recive femoral nerve block

Patients with osteoarthritis (OA) face physical challenges due to pain. Osteoarthritis of the knee joint can be treated surgically with a total knee replacement (TKR). After surgical intervention with TKR, optimizing a patient's pain control for promotion of early ambulation is important. Femoral nerve block (FNB) is one method that has been shown to reduce postoperative pain. A non-experimental, comparative case-control study was conducted to compare pain levels and the length of stay (LOS) for FNB versus non-FNB TKR patients. A convenience sample of 20 FNB and 20 non-FNB patients was obtained. The physical context of Katharine Kolcaba's comfort theory served as the conceptual framework in this study. Optimal pain management allows for promotion of early ambulation which decreases post-operative complications that can prolong hospital stays. This study found there are decreased pain levels and no significant difference in LOS for patients who received FNB versus those who did not receive FNB. Those who received FNB had a LOS (0.46 days, p = 0.15) and a lower pain level (1.45 points, p = 0.03) twenty-four hours post-operatively.