What is involved in Surgery Prep?

Surgery prep is something that you may not have heard of before, but it is vital to know what’s involved in this process. Surgery prep involves the process of preparing your body for surgery, including things like getting blood drawn and prepping surgical sites. This includes any necessary injections or medications as well. There are many things that can happen during surgery prep that could be scary or worrisome for patients. Here’s a brief rundown of what you need to know.

What is Surgery Prep?
Surgery prep comes in many different forms, and it’s typically performed prior to surgery. These can include tasks such as fasting for up to 8 hours before the procedure, washing the surgical site with antiseptic soap, and/or receiving blood tests that check organ function and coagulation factors. Other parts of surgery prep may include receiving necessary injections or medications beforehand.

Why is Surgery Prep Important?
Prepping the patient ahead of time helps speed up recovery post-op by making sure that there’s no delay in starting treatment after surgery (especially when you’re sick or hurt). If a patient isn’t fully prepped beforehand, they could wind up delaying much-needed medical help. It also helps the surgical team know what drugs to give you later on, and that you’re in full health.

What is Involved in a Surgical Prep?
During surgery prep, certain parts of the patient’s body may be shaved or prepped with antiseptic. Surgery prep can be an invasive process and typically requires a hospital stay, and/or specific medications to make them healthy for surgery. The time needed for each type of surgery varies, however – so ask your doctor how long they recommend. During this time, patients will typically communicate with doctors about any questions or concerns they have regarding the upcoming procedure. Some examples of common surgeries include:

C-sections: If you’re having a C-section, surgery prep typically involves a bowel cleansing to prevent infection. This is done by taking a laxative the night before surgery and a magnesium citrate solution/syrup, limiting solid foods for 24 hours prior, and not drinking or eating 8 hours before going into the OR. All of these steps are necessary to have a clean surgical field.

Tonsillectomy: In this case, patients will be asked to stop eating around midnight the day before surgery, and they may need blood work or an EKG beforehand too. Antibiotics can also help keep your tonsils healthy in the days leading up to Surgery in Richardson, TX.

Heart surgery: Before heart surgery, patients may need to have a PICC line inserted into their arm for several days before surgery as well as receive antibiotics through that line – this helps prevent infections during and after the procedure.

How Long is Surgery Prep?
Surgery prep can be different depending on the type of surgery but typically lasts one to two days. This varies from case to case, however – ask your doctor how long you should expect this process to take ahead of time. Oftentimes, the medical team will want to keep you overnight for observation and stability before surgery. This can vary depending on how healthy the patient is, and what the surgical team recommends.

It is also worth noting that surgery prep can also include changes to your current lifestyle that may last a while (for example, quitting smoking before chest/heart surgery or refraining from drinking alcohol). You should always ask about these things with your medical team before any surgical procedure.

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