Is TMR Right for Me?

What Can I Expect?

• A TMR surgery may last two to four hours and may require a hospital stay of one to five days, depending on the extent of your surgery and your post-operative pain management needs.
• After your surgery, your physician will schedule follow-up appointments and may recommend annual follow-ups.
• If you plan to have a prosthetic and have TMR at the time of amputation, you may begin the fitting process at four to six weeks. You may expect to receive your prosthesis six to eight weeks after surgery.
• If you had TMR for established nerve pain, you may be back to work as early as two weeks after surgery, depending on the type of work you do.¹ The return time to work varies, however.  Surgical pain or swelling may make it difficult to wear your prosthetic device.  Ask your doctor about this important issue.

When Will I Have Relief From Pain?

Most people experience surgery-related pain but not nerve pain immediately after the TMR procedure.  The nerve then “wakes up” causing an increase in nerve pain soon after. Your doctor may prescribe medications to help manage pain following surgery. Your need for pain medication may decrease over time as the nerves heal. If the TMR procedure is successful, you will experience a reduction in both nerve pain and surgical pain compared to your pain level before having surgery.

If you currently have phantom limb pain, recovery may take longer (six to nine months) for the phantoms to improve. Over time, many people can reduce or eliminate the need for pain medications under their physician’s supervision.¹