Effect of Warm Pads and Early Movement on Shoulder Pain and Healing Process for Women Recovering from Gynecological Laparoscopic Surgery

Background: Improving and facilitating women recovery from shoulder discomfort following gynecological laparoscopic surgery is a crucial objective for successfully conducting gynecological laparoscopic surgery. The study aim was to evaluate the effect of warm pads and early movement on shoulder pain and healing process for women recovering from gynecological laparoscopic surgery. A randomized controlled trial (RCT) as a design was used. Setting: This study was conducted at the gynecological units affiliated to Maternity and Children's hospital, Minia University, Egypt. Sample: A systematic random sample consisted of 186 women. Tools: Data collected for this study using three tools. Tool 1: Structured Interviewing Questionnaire, Visual Analogue Pain Scale tool (II), and Postoperative Quality of Recovery Score tool (III). The study Results revealed that shoulder pain in the warm pads and early movement group was markedly lower than in the control group at various assessment times, specifically at 4 hours post-surgery and at 6, 12, and 24 hours. Also. mean scores of women qualities of recovery domains were significantly higher in the intervention group and there is significant negative correlation between presence of pain and women quality of recovery in the intervention group than in the control group. Conclusion: The application of warm pads combined with early movement acts as a successful non-drug approach for minimizing postoperatively shoulder pain and boosting healing in women undertaking gynecological laparoscopic surgical procedures Recommendations: warm pads and early movement should be incorporated into the hospital protocol as a non-pharmacological modality for improving shoulder pain and the quality of recovery post-gynecological laparoscopy.