Progress in Rehabilitation of Chronic Pain after Vertebroplasty of Osteoporotic Vertebral Compression Fracture

Abstract

Osteoporosis is one of the major chronic diseases affecting the elderly population, and vertebral compression fracture is among its most common complications. Vertebral augmentation is the conventional surgical treatment and can substantially relieve pain. However, because of factors such as the patient’s underlying deficiency-and-blood-stasis constitution, injury to muscles and fascia, the surgical approach, the distribution or leakage of bone cement, and psychological factors, some patients still experience chronic postoperative pain or residual pain, which seriously affects quality of life. Therefore, rehabilitation after vertebral augmentation for osteoporotic vertebral compression fracture is critically important. Relevant studies have shown that both traditional Chinese medicine and Western medicine rehabilitation interventions can alleviate chronic postoperative pain. For example, traditional Chinese medicine can improve clinical symptoms through approaches such as nourishing yin, tonifying yang, and eliminating dampness, whereas Western medicine can relieve postoperative pain through the combination of analgesics and anti-osteoporosis drugs. This review summarizes the causes of chronic pain after vertebral augmentation for osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures and reviews research progress in traditional Chinese medicine rehabilitation and Western medicine rehabilitation.