› Patients who receive inadequate pain assessment and/or management before or after surgery may experience intense
postoperative pain. This can be prevented by appropriate preoperative pain assessment and the implementation of effective
pain management strategies after surgery
› Ongoing, severe pain can trigger the stress response typical of traumatic injury (i.e., increased cardiac output and metabolic
rate, impaired insulin response, elevated cortisol production, and fluid retention), which increases the risk for myocardial
infarction and thromboembolism in some patients