Efeito da fototerapia sobre a dor aguda e progresso inflamatório em pacientes submetidos à artroplastia total de quadril

Abstract

Musculoskeletal and joint deficiencies are among the more prevalent and symptomatic problems concerning the health of elderly people. The osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic degenerative joint disease characterized by the erosion of articular cartilage, resulting in joint deformity and progressive loss of function. When the conservative therapy fails, the total hip arthroplasty (TKA) is indicated. The surgical trauma induces pain and immune response. The scientific literature has demonstrated the efficacy of phototherapy on tissue regeneration, modulation of inflammation and pain relief and can be used as part of the treatment. The aim of this study was to analyze the effect of phototherapy on pain and inflammation in patients undergoing total hip arthroplasty. To achieve this, the study included 18 patients in the period between 8-12 hours post-operative TKA, divided into two groups (placebo n = 9 and phototherapy n = 9).They were assessed before and after the application of phototherapy through the visual analogic scale and the collecting of blood sample for the evaluation of the cytokines TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-8. After irradiation, we observed that the values referred to the visual analogic scale, as well as the analysis of serum TNF-α and IL-8, showed a statistically significant difference between groups (p = 0,05). Nevertheless, the same did not occur with IL-6. We concluded that phototherapy has shown efficacy in the pain reduction as well as in the serum levels of TNF-α and IL-8 of patients in the postoperative total hip arthroplasty.