Surgery: Do you ever cheat?

[Jennie@ifish]

No food or liquid after midnight.

I HATE THAT!

It's like the worst part of surgery!

Do you ever cheat? My surgery is not until 11, and I will be up at 5. ISH! COTTON MOUTH!

[Miss B Haven]

Originally posted by Jennie@ifish:
Do you ever cheat? My surgery is not until 11, and I will be up at 5. ISH! COTTON MOUTH!
[/QB]

<font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helv">Jennie - That does not mean you can't brush your teeth and gargle. Just gargle with a little Coffee, then gargle with a little OJ. Then gargle with a little muffin. You can't help but swallow just a tiny little bit.

Try the prep for colon surgery, not only no eating but they give you atomic magnum laxatives :shocked: and overdose you on two different antibiotics.

:shocked: Stuf was coming out both ends explosively! :shocked:

[DanS]

Take enough to wet your mouth and a little squirt for your throat. There is a good reason they tell you not to consume food or drink before your surgery, so be a good girl and listen to your doctors.

[Small Fry]

No cheating!

They warn you that you can choke on your own bile. Not a good thing when you out.

So be good and recover soon.

[ 09-17-2002, 10:13 PM: Message edited by: Small Fry ]

[fishisabonus]

Don't cheat... they make those rules for a good reason.

[Dan Christopher]

i cheated on mine and ate at 11;00 pm the night before and the surgery was at 3 p.m the next day..endd result they waited tell 7 p.m to do it. thats along time to not eat and drink...

dont cheat

rinse, swish ,and spit

good luck

[Straydog]

Don't cheat but good luck and know we are thinking of our leader!! :grin:

Warm thoughts your way.....

[Boyerfish]

Eatin & Drikin or the lack therof isn't my problem. I'm having three disc's in my neck fused ! The problem started when the Doc said they were bolting a Halo to my head for six weeks. Bad for the fishin, but good for the reception. GOOD LUCK.

[Red]

Jen,

I know the NPO(Non Per Os) {nothing goes into the mouth} order seems onerous, but as noted it's designed to protect you.

When you undergo surgery, with either a general anesthetic ( totally unconscious) or a local anesthetic coupled with sedatives, you can lose the protective reflexes that act to keep you from aspirating (inhaling) crap into your lungs.

Specifically, the reflex involves your epiglottis covering over your trachea (windpipe) if any foreign object gets into the area. Which then is followed by a vigorous cough, to expell anything that may have gotten into your trachea or lungs. Anesthetic drugs depress and /or obliterate this reflex.

For years and years the party line was : " to help prevent regurgitation (food contents from the stomach coming up) and aspiration (getting into the lungs), keep the stomach empty for a minimum of eight hours prior to surgery.

What damage is done if stomach contents are aspirated into the lungs? It depends on what got into the lungs. Solid food is worse that liquids, but the main determiner of damage is the ph (acidity) of the aspirate. Highly acidic particles or liquids do the most damage. The damage can range from a simple fever, to a chest cold, to as full blown pneumonia, to body-wide infection, to extreme dysfunction of the lungs causing death. In my seventeen years of anesthesia I've seen the full range. Because of the potential for damage, we do delay or cancel cases if it is learned that the patient has violated the NPO orders. It's all about patient safety!

Now the good news. The American Society of Anesthesiologists have looked at the NPO standards for several years, and there seems to be an ongoing trend to make then less rigorous. For example, I now allow most patients who inquire, to have clear liquids up until 6 hours prior to surgery. For kids, I will allow them to have clear liquids up to 4 hours before surgery. Please note that some patients have conditions that put them at greater risk for aspiration, and these people will not fall under the less rigorous rules. Most importantly , please request that your anesthesiologist call you the night before surgery, so that you may discuss this with them. Some practitioners will want you to follow the "old" gold standard.

[Hogmaster]

Thanks doc! That was enlightening and makes me feel better about all those times I have cheated with some water the night before! :-)

Jenn, I thought you were talking about removing X early after surgery.

X. You know;
Bandages
Casts
Stitches
Don't walk on it orders
Don't use it orders
Use it orders
Walk on it orders

Nope, never done anything like that :grin: