If you or someone you know is facing knee replacement surgery, pain relief afterward is a top concern. A new analysis of 42 studies involving over 3,100 patients suggests that simple therapies like ice packs (cryotherapy), kinesio taping, and electroacupuncture may work better than the usual continuous passive motion machine for early pain.
Cryotherapy came out on top, with an 88% chance of being the most effective option. Kinesio taping and electroacupuncture also showed significant pain reduction compared to standard care. Manual lymphatic drainage helped too, but not as much.
Here's the catch: the evidence behind these findings is rated low to very low quality. Many of the studies had potential bias, so the results aren't rock-solid. That doesn't mean these therapies don't work, just that we need more rigorous research to be sure.
For now, if you're recovering from knee replacement, talk to your doctor about whether cryotherapy or other non-drug options might help. But take these rankings with a grain of salt.