| Pain after an operation: Taking care of your child's pain at home | 1255.00000000000 | Pain after an operation: Taking care of your child's pain at home | Pain after an operation: Taking care of your child's pain at home | P | English | Pain/Anaesthesia | Child (0-12 years);Teen (13-18 years) | Body | Nervous system | Non-drug treatment | Caregivers
Adult (19+) | NA | | 2012-04-09T04:00:00Z | | | | | | 6.20000000000000 | 77.7000000000000 | 1790.00000000000 | | Health (A-Z) - Procedure | Health A-Z | <p>Most children have at least some pain after an operation, which is called post-operative pain. Learn about relieving a child's post-operative pain at home.</p> | <p>You are taking your child home from the hospital after an operation. Your child will probably feel pain for the first few days at home. This page will give you some information about your child's pain. The brochure will also tell you how to care for your child when they are in pain. </p><h2>Write important information here</h2><p>Name of your child's surgical clinic:</p>
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<p>Phone number:</p>
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<p>Contact person:</p>
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<div class="pdf-page-break"><h2>What you need to know about your child's pain</h2><p>Most children have at least some pain after an operation. This is called post-operative pain. How much pain your child will have, and for how long, will depend on your child and the type of operation your child had. </p><p>
<strong>Here are some things you should know about your child's post-operative pain:</strong></p><ul><li>Your child will probably have pain after their operation.</li><li>Not all children feel pain the same way.</li><li>In the days after an operation, the pain should get better, not worse.<br></li><li>Pain medicine will help your child hurt less.</li><li>Comforting your child will help them
<a href="/Article?contentid=1259&language=English">relax</a> and relieve pain.</li><li>
<a href="/Article?contentid=1259&language=English">Distracting</a> your child can also help relieve pain.</li><li>Comfort and distraction can be as important as giving medicine to your child.</li></ul></div> | <h2>Knowing if your child is in pain</h2>
<figure>
<span class="asset-image-title">Pain assessment numerical/visual analogue scale</span>
<img src="https://assets.aboutkidshealth.ca/akhassets/PN_painscale_thermom_CHART_IMG_EN.jpg" alt="A thermometer numbered zero to ten, with no hurt marked at the bottom of the thermometer and worse hurt at the top" />
<figcaption class="asset-image-caption">Children are asked to indicate their pain intensity by putting a mark on the scale.</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Sometimes your child will say when they hurt. They may use words like pain, hurt, booboo, sore or ouchie. Your child may point to the part that hurts, or protect it. If they do not complain of pain, you can ask your child how much pain they have. </p><p>If your child is older, the nurses in the hospital may have used a 0 to 10 pain scale to find out how much pain your child may have had. You can do the same. Ask your child to rate the pain on a scale from 0 to 10. Zero is no pain, and 10 is the worst pain ever. Mild pain would be 0 to 3, medium pain would be 4 to 6, and strong pain would be more than 7. </p><p>The nurses in the hospital may also have used a pain scale asking your child if they hurt a little or a lot.</p><h2>Some children will not speak about their pain<br></h2><p>Your child may not be able to talk or tell you about their pain. Watch your child carefully and see what you think. Parents often know if their child has pain. </p><div class="pdf-page-break"><h3>What to look for to see if your child is in pain</h3><p>Look and see if your child frowns, or kicks out their legs. Do they grind their teeth? Does your child pull their legs up to their stomach? If they moan or cry more than usual, or are stiff, your child may have pain. </p></div> | <h2>Key points</h2>
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<li>If your child has had an operation they will probably have some pain for at least several days after the procedure.</li>
<li>You can give pain medicine regularly in the first few days after your child is home to help them to hurt less. After that only give the medicine when your child needs it.</li>
<li>In addition to medicine comforting your child and distraction techniques such as listening to music, playing and blowing bubbles help to reduce pain.</li>
</ul> | | | | | | | | <h2>Relieving your child's pain at home</h2><p>Before you leave the hospital with your child, the doctor, advanced practice nurse or nurse will tell you how you can help your child when they hurt. </p><p>Normally, if your child is in pain on the day they go home, you can give them some pain medicine regularly during the rest of the day, and the next few days too, if needed. </p><p>Giving pain medicine regularly in the first few days after your child is home will help them to hurt less.</p><h2>Do not wait to give pain medicine</h2><p>Pain relief works best when you do not wait until your child is in a lot of pain before you give the medicine. If you wait, it may take longer for the pain to go away. </p><p>After the first few days, when your child hurts less, give the medicine only when they need it. You will know that your child needs the medicine when they say it hurts. The way they act may also show you that your child is in pain. </p><h2>Acetaminophen (Tylenol or Tempra)</h2><p>These are three different names for the same medicine. If your child is having mild pain, you can use regular
<a title="Acetaminophen for children" href="/Article?contentid=62&language=English">acetaminophen</a> every four hours. </p><p>The amount of medicine to give depends on your child's age and weight. Read the directions on the side of the bottle or box to find out the right amount, or dose, for your child's age and weight. </p><p>Acetaminophen is a safe medicine to give your child. There will be no major side effects when you give this medicine as explained on the box or bottle. Side effects are problems that the medicine itself causes. </p><div class="pdf-page-break"><h2>Opioids: Hydromorphone, morphine, oxycodone</h2><p>These are all different types of drugs called opioids. You can give your child an opioid if they are having a medium amount of pain at home. You can give oral hydromorphone every four to six hours,
<a title="Morphine for children" href="/Article?contentid=194&language=English">morphine</a> every four hours, and oxycodone every four hours as needed. </p><p>The amount of medicine to give depends on your child's weight. Check the side of the box or bottle to find out the right amount to give to your child. You can also ask your child's doctor, advanced practice nurse or nurse to tell you the correct amount to give. </p><p>Opioids are safe medicines to give your child in the first few days after an operation.</p><h3>Your child should be easy to wake up</h3><p>If your child takes an opioid, it may make them sleepy. But it should be easy to wake them up. If you have trouble waking your child, call your doctor or go to the emergency department right away.</p><h3>Going to the bathroom</h3><p>If your child takes an opioid for a few days, they may find it hard to have a bowel movement (have a poop). This is called
<a title="Constipation in children" href="/Article?contentid=6&language=English">constipation</a>. To avoid constipation, try to get your child to drink lots of fluids, such as water, juice and milk. Eating fruits and vegetables, especially raw ones such as apples, pears, oranges, carrots and celery, will also help. Lots of fluid and these foods will often make it easier for your child to have a bowel movement. </p><p>Your surgeon may sometimes prescribe medicine to help your child have a bowel movement.</p></div><h2>Opioids and acetaminophen</h2><p>You can give your child opioids and acetaminophen together if they are having a medium amount of pain in the first few days after the operation. </p><p>For a younger child that is having a medium amount of pain, you can give them liquid opioid, as well as liquid acetaminophen.</p><p>For an older child, you can give a combination pill that contains both an opioid and acetaminophen.</p><div class="pdf-page-break"><h2>Different medicines for different pain</h2><p>What pain medicines your child should get depends on how much pain your child has. For example:</p><ul><li>Mild pain: Give acetaminophen. This medicine is also called Tylenol or Tempra. Give only one of these three same medicines to your child.</li><li>Medium pain: Give acetaminophen plus an opioid to your child. </li><li>Strong pain: Call the hospital or your doctor.
<p></p></li></ul></div><h2>Other pain medicines</h2><p>The nurse, advanced practice nurse, or doctor may give you other pain medicines for your child, to use at home. Ask how and when to use this other medicine if the doctor prescribes it for your child. The nurse, advanced practice nurse or doctor may tell you that you can use the other medicine by itself, or together with acetaminophen. </p><p>If this medicine does not help your child, ask your advanced practice nurse, doctor or family doctor for advice.</p><p>Please fill in the information below, or ask your nurse or advanced practice nurse to help you before you leave the hospital.</p><h3>The pain medicine for my child is:</h3><ol><li><p>Name of pain medicine:</p><p>How much to give (dose):</p><p>How often to give:</p></li><li><p>Name of pain medicine:</p><p>How much to give (dose):</p><p>How often to give:</p></li><li><p>Name of pain medicine:</p><p>How much to give (dose):</p><p>How often to give:</p></li></ol><div class="pdf-page-break"><h2>Your child's safety and pain medicine</h2><p>Using pain medicine is a safe way to lessen your child's pain in the first few days after an operation. There is no danger that your child will need more and more medicine to not feel pain if you give it to them in the first few days after the operation. There is no danger that your child will need the medicine after the pain goes away. Most children need pain medicine for a few days or even a week after the operation. </p><p>In a few days, when your child is in less pain, you can just give your child regular acetaminophen for mild pain.</p></div><h2>Lessening pain without medicine</h2><p>Comfort your child in the ways that worked best for them before the operation. Hold, cuddle, rock or stroke them. Give an older child a back rub, or encourage them to listen to music or practice breathing and blowing. </p><h3>Distraction takes away pain</h3><p>Take your child's attention away from their pain. Some children are distracted by:</p><ul><li>watching TV, videos, DVDs or computer games </li><li>storytelling </li><li>blowing bubbles </li><li>playing with you </li><li>playing with their favorite toy </li></ul><h2>Finding out how your child is doing</h2><p>After you try to help your child feel less pain, you need to check and see if their pain is really less than it was before.</p><h3>Here is how you can check:</h3><ul><li>Check how much pain your child has one hour after you give the pain medicine.</li><li>Ask your child about the pain on the scale from 0 to 10, or "hurts a little, hurts a lot", or look carefully at how they act.</li><li>If your child is still in pain, call your doctor or the unit your child was on to see if you are giving them the right amount of medicine.</li><li>Ask if the nurse, advanced practice nurse or doctor can suggest a stronger medicine for your child's pain.</li><li>Remember to comfort your child and try to take their attention away from the pain.</li></ul> | | <h2>When to call your doctor</h2>
<p>If the pain medicine and comforting your child do not work to lessen pain or if your child's pain gets worse, call your doctor's office. </p>
<p>Write down your doctor's name:</p>
<p>Write down your doctor's number:</p> | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | <img alt="" src="https://assets.aboutkidshealth.ca/AKHAssets/pain_after_an_operation_taking_care_of_child_at_home.jpg" style="BORDER:0px solid;" /> | https://assets.aboutkidshealth.ca/AKHAssets/pain_after_an_operation_taking_care_of_child_at_home.jpg | | | | | | | Pain after an operation: Taking care of your child's pain at home | | False | | | | | | | | |
