Patient Education

Pain Pumps

Description:

Pain pumps are simply reservoirs of novacaine-like numbing medicine which is automatically pumped through a small clear plastic tube into your joint or incision after an operation to keep it numb and therefore less painful. They are completely automatic and require NOTHING from the user while they are pumping in the medicine. When they empty, after about 2-3 days, the clear plastic tube should be pulled out by the patient to lessen the chances of infection.

When are they used?

Mostly after arthroscopic surgeries, such as shoulder or knee arthroscopy.

Why are they used?

Any operation is potentially painful. These devices lessen the pain, allowing most patients to go home the night of their surgery.

What medicine is in them?

Most doctors use Marcaine or Chirocaine, which are related to Novacaine. These are chemicals that cause numbness, and thereby interrupt pain signals to the brain. Some doctors mix in narcotics, which can also lessen the pain and do not have side-effects such as addiction.

What do I have to do to make it work?

Nothing! They are completely automatic. When they run out of medicine after a day or two, you should just pull on the tube until it comes all the way out. It may be taped to the skin under the dressing, but it WILL come out and won't hurt more than a slight sting at most. You DO NOT have to remove your dressing, and you just throw the entire device in the trash after it is out, as it is disposable.

What if it is not pumping medicine?

The device is very simple, just a spring-loaded pump, so it almost always is working. It pumps VERY slowly, making flow hard to see. If you can find a tiny air bubble in the line, you can follow it about a quarter-inch in 30 seconds or so to verify it is moving. That confirms it is working. However, air bubbles usually are not visible, and so it is usually impossible to verify that it is flowing, but you will see over the first day the volume of medicine lessens.

If you are convinced it is not working, call the 1-800 number on the device to get the device manufacturer to evaluate the problem over the phone. Usual suggestions, which you should try before calling, are to pull back about 1 inch on the tube to see if that frees it up and re-establishes flow. Make sure ther are no kinks in the line, and this may require that you follow it under the dressing to the point it enters the skin. This is okay to do, as long as you replace the dressing after you are done looking at the line.

Sometimes there is some leakage. If it is not soaking the dressing, ignore it. If it is soaking the dressing, you should remove the tube and throw the device away. It is not sterile and thus not safe to attempt to re-insert the catheter though the skin.

The doctor who put it in will not know how to fix the device, and will only be able to recommend you call the manufacturer, or give additional advice on pain management, or recommend you go to your local emergency room.