Planning Your Surgery
Below you will find preoperative instructions and information.
General Preoperative Instructions
1 week prior to surgery
- Stop taking any aspirin or aspirin-like products (Baby Aspirin, Advil, Motrin, Aleve, St. John’s Wort, Mobic, etc). If you have questions about whether one of your medications is an aspirin-like medication, please give us a call.
- Go to the drug store and purchase a small roll of bandage tape and a small box of 4×4 gauze for dressing changes after surgery and a bottle of Hibiclens soap.
- If you are currently on Vicodin, Norco, Darvocet, or another narcotic medication, decrease the use or stop taking it at this time. We use these types of medications to manage your postoperative pain. All medications that should be stopped before surgery are listed here.
Night before surgery
- DO NOT EAT or drink anything after midnight or your surgery could be canceled. You may have a sip of water with your medication. Take only the medications that your doctor or the hospital nurse says it is okay to take
- Make a list of your current medications, past surgical procedures and medical problems to bring with you the morning of surgery. This information will be for the anesthesia team.
- Take a shower or bath the night before or morning of surgery.
- Outpatient surgery: Make arrangements for someone to come with you to your surgery. You will need someone to drive you home. The expected wait time will be about 6 hours from the time you arrive at the hospital until the time of discharge.
