|
Following a few simple steps can help prepare you for surgery
and help you recover.
- You should stop smoking at least two weeks before surgery.
If this is not possible, stop smoking as soon as you can before
surgery. Your lungs will work better and your blood stream will
improve, helping you heal more quickly.
- Do not drink alcoholic beverages at least one week before
surgery. Alcohol can cause serious problems when combined with
anesthesia and other medication you may receive.
- Aspirin, ibuprofen (such as Motrin, Nuprin or Advil), Coumadin,
and some other medications may cause excessive bleeding. Ask
your doctor if you should stop taking these drugs or other medicine
before your surgery. Your doctor may provide other instructions
for you to follow before surgery.
- Do not eat or drink anything after midnight on the night before
your surgery. Check with your doctor about any prescription
drugs you take. He or she may ask you to take these with a small
sip of water on the morning of your surgery.
- Please bathe or shower with an antibacterial soap, either
the night before or the morning of surgery. NO lotions, creams,
powders or deodorant after bathing.
- If you develop a fever, cold or rash, tell your doctor. If
may be necessary to postpone your surgery.
- Plan to have someone drive you to the hospital and pick you
up after your surgery. You may also need extra help when you
get home. Plan for this ahead of time. If you are having outpatient
surgery, you must have a family member or friend with you after
surgery to review your instructions and drive you home.
About Anesthesia
A member of the anesthesia team will take you to the operating
room. A staff member with start an intravenous, or IV, tube in
your arm or hand vein. You will receive anesthesia medications
through you IV tube. (In some cases, you will be required to make
an appointment for evaluation by an anesthesiologist prior to
your surgery.)
Types of Anesthesia
Your anesthesia team can use several methods to control pain
during your operation. The drugs used will depend on the type
of operation you are having and your medical history.
There are three main types of anesthesia: general, regional and
local anesthesia (with or with out sedatives).
1. General Anesthesia: Your entire body is “asleep”
for surgery. This usually occurs in two stages. First, you will
receive a drug through your IV tube that will make you drift off
to sleep and become unaware of what is going on around you. The
second stage of general anesthesia keeps you asleep through your
surgery. You may breathe anesthesia medication through a mask
or receive medicine through the IV tube in your arm.
2. Regional Anesthesia: Areas of the body are number so that
you feel no pain. Common types of regional anesthesia are epidural,
spinal and caudal anesthesia, which can numb larger areas of your
body, from your abdomen to your feet. Or you may receive what
is called a peripheral nerve block, which numbs smaller areas
of your body. With regional anesthesia, you may receive other
drugs that will make you drowsy or keep you in a light sleep.
3. Local Anesthesia: you may be awake and aware during the surgery,
or a member of the team may give you medicine that makes you drowsy
or put you in a light sleep.
Whichever type of anesthesia you have, the staff will monitor
your blood pressure, pulse and breathing closely.
After Your Operation
After you have had surgery, you will recover from the anesthesia
in the recovery room or, when necessary, in the surgical intensive
care unit, or SICU. During you recovery, the staff will monitor
your heart rate, breathing rate and blood pressure closely until
you are ready to return to your room or be discharged.
When You Wake Up: You may wake up with a small tube, or catheter,
in your bladder. The catheter helps you urinate and helps your
doctor know that your kidneys and bladder are working normally.
A staff member can easily remove this tube for you when your doctor
says you are ready. You may be uncomfortable after surgery. Tell
your doctor or nurse if you have
- Nausea.
- Dizziness.
- Pain.
- Sore Throat.
These are common side effects of anesthesia and surgery. Your
doctor may prescribe medication to relieve these discomforts.
Pain Control: As you recover in the hospital, your doctor will
order an appropriate medication for you based on your condition,
and the nursing staff will assess your pain medication needs throughout
your stay. Two common methods of controlling pain are epidural
analgesia (pain medicine) and intravenous patient–controlled
analgesia pumps.
- Epidural Analgesia: If you have had total joint replacement,
a Caesarean delivery or other surgery on your abdomen or chest,
the Department of Anesthesia’s postoperative pain-management
service can provide epidural analgesia to control you pain.
A small plastic tube will be placed in your back before surgery
that will deliver pain medicine right to the nerves that “create”
pain. The staff can control the amount of pain medication with
a special pump during and after surgery.
- Intravenous Patient–Controlled Analgesia (PCA) Pumps:
A PCA pump delivers a prescribed amount of pain medication into
your arm vein through an IV tube. You can control the amount
of pain medication that flows into your blood by pressing a
button on a handheld device attached to the pump. The pump is
programmed so that it will not deliver too much pain medication.
Your Role in Recovery
Because your recovery will go more smoothly if your become active
after your surgery, the staff will ask you to move and walk around
as soon as possible. You should gradually increase you activity
level while giving yourself time to rest.
Deep breathing and coughing help prevent fluids from building
up in your lungs, which can lead to pneumonia. To help you get
better faster, a staff member will frequently ask you to cough
and breathe deeply.
If you are staying in the hospital, you will use a device called
an incentive spirometer that helps you take deep breaths to help
keep you lungs in shape. The nurse will show you how to use this
device. Walking and moving your legs help your blood flow return
to normal and help prevent blood clots from forming.
Eating to Speed You Recovery:
Surgery may slow down the way your body digests food.
Healthy eating can help you speed up your recovery. If you are
in the hospital, you may be fed intravenously. When your doctor
says you are ready, he or she will order food to help you get
back to a normal diet. If you are an outpatient recovering at
home, follow your doctor’s orders regarding diet.
Caring for Your Incision:
After your surgery, you will probably have an incision,
which may be closed with staples or with sutures, also know as
stitches. Your incision may be covered by a bandage, or dressing.
There also may be a tube in the incision and dressing.
Here are some tips to help your incision heal quickly.
- Keep the incision area clean and dry.
- Wash your hands before and after touching the area.
- Take warm showers instead of baths.
- Follow you doctor’s instructions, which you will receive
from your nurse before you leave the hospital.
Going Home
Your doctor will decide when you are ready to be discharged from
the hospital. You will receive instructions on continuing your
recovery at home.
Be sure to ask about:
- Medicine. How much should you take? When should you take
it?
- Taking care of your incision.
- Resuming sexual activities.
- Bathing and showering.
- Signs of infection.
- What to eat.
- Physical activity.
- Driving.
- Returning to work.
- Your first follow-up visit.
Be sure that you understand that you and your family understand
these instructions. If you have questions when you get home, call
your doctor.
When to Call Your Doctor
Call your doctor if:
- You have a fever higher than 101 degrees.
- You notice unusual redness or drainage around the incision.
- You develop a rash around the incision.
- Your incision bleeds.
- Your incision opens. Lightly press a bandage to the wound
to control drainage.
- Your pain medicine does not control your pain.
|
