It is common to experience acute pain (temporary pain) following any type of surgical intervention, though acute pain will typically resolve over time. However, chronic pain (pain lasting greater than 3 months that does not resolve) is not uncommon and has been reported in up to 20% of surgical patients. This is most common in surgeries that involve the breasts, the spine such as cervical (neck) and lumbar (lower back) interventions, inguinal hernias, and orthopedic interventions such as shoulder surgery and joint replacements of the knee and hips. At Colorado Pain Care, roughly 30% of our patient population is a result of post-surgical pain that has become chronic pain.