Objective  To observe the effect of pain management in lower limb function recovery of patients undergoing knee arthroplasty.

  Methods  A total of 90 patients undergoing knee joint replacement in our hospital were divided into control group (n=45) and observation group (n=45) according to the odd-even order of admission. The control group was given routine nursing, while the observation group was combined with pain management. The Visual Analogue Scale(VAS) scores, postoperative recovery, Hospital for Special Surgery Knee Score (HSS), General Self-efficacy Scale (GSES) and incidence of complication were compared between the two groups.

  Results  The VAS scores of the observation group were significantly lower than those of the control group at 6, 2, 48, 72 h after surgery and at discharge (P < 0.05). After intervention, sleep time during 24 h in observation group was longer, while the time to first bed-off, time to knee joint flexion≥ 90 °and hospitalization time were shorter than those in control group (P < 0.05). After intervention, the HSS and GSES scores of the observation group were significantly higher, and the incidence of total complication of the observation group was significantly lower than that of the control group (P < 0.05).

  Conclusion  Pain management with higher safety can promote the recovery of lower limb function in patients after knee joint replacement, relieve pain, and improve self-efficiency.