What Pain Reliever Can I Take Before Surgery? (My Surgeon Agreed)

A man thinks, "What pain reliever can I take before surgery?". It is essential to follow your surgeon's instructions.

What pain reliever can I take before the surgery as I am feeling anxious about it? Generally speaking, whenever there is someone who will undergo surgery, it is natural to feel nervous. The nervousness increases even more, especially on the day before surgery. In this case, this anxiousness can lead us to want to take medicines to address it. But what medications are we allowed to take before the day of surgery? We’ll find it out later. Meanwhile, if you have cosmetic concerns, please see what’s offered at dralanevans.com.au. Improving your esthetics is their forte.

On the condition that you will undergo surgery, how ready are you? Don’t worry. It’s natural to feel a little uneasy about it. As long as you have met the requirements and followed what your surgeon instructed, it will all do well. So, given that you are entirely nervous, what can you do about it? Without further ado, allow me to share the last-minute details you need to secure.

 

What Pain Reliever Can I Take Before Surgery?

A woman is about to take her medicines according to prescription.By all means, you have to follow all the instructions that they have given you. These instructions are essential for the success of the surgery. It is important to realize that neglecting any of these details may lead to issues affecting the surgery. A surgical operation is not something you should take lightly.

In actuality, a doctor will recommend patients not to take medications within 8 hours prior to surgery. The majority of the medication may cause stomach irritation or nausea. For this reason, your surgical team should be aware of all the medications you take prior to surgery. This way, they can make adjustments if necessary. They might discuss it with your physician as well.

Additionally, there is a higher chance that your surgeon will require you to stop taking these medicines one to two weeks before the surgery. Some medications cause difficulty in forming a blood clot. In effect, prolonged bleeding is most likely to happen during the surgery. It will prolong the surgery as well.

 

Prior To Surgery

The medications you need to inform them include prescriptions, vitamins, minerals, herbs, drugs, or any supplements. On the other hand, you can still take your routine morning medication only with a sip of water despite not eating. Meanwhile, below are the medication your surgeon might discuss with your physician.

  • Blood-thinning medications
  • Medications for diabetes (blood sugar related)
  • Pain, anxiety, and depression medications
  • Nicotine, alcohol, marijuana, or other cannabidiol (CBD) products

Given the points mentioned above, it is not advisable to take any medications without consent from your doctor. The preparation before surgery is just as essential as the surgical operation day and the recovery period. So, it would be best to follow what the medical team instructed to ensure success.

Before we move to the day of surgery, allow me to discuss blood-thinning medication, namely non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). We’ll get to know more of it precisely and what is in it that makes doctors decide not to take it before the procedure.

 

Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Medications (NSAIDs)

Generally speaking, these drugs are effective in reducing inflammation, pain, and fever. Additionally, these drugs fall under non-opioid analgesics. In actuality, opioid medicines usually apply to more severe types of pain. On the contrary, NSAIDs cover those aches and pain, which are lesser in severity. In this case, here are the examples of NSAIDs. A few of them might be already familiar to you.

Over-the-counter NSAIDs

Prescription NSAIDs

  • Oxaprozin
  • Etodolac
  • Indomethacin
  • Naproxen (Naprosyn)
  • Nabumetone
  • Diclofenac
  • Vimovo

Notably, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications are broad and from various medicine classes. Aside from the functions we already mentioned, this group of medicine slows down prostaglandins’ formation. Reduced prostaglandins mean it decreased inflammation as well.

 

On the Day of Surgery

Make sure to ask your surgeon all the details you have to know before the day of surgery.On your schedule of surgery, please arrive at the surgery center an hour or more before the procedure. First, patients have to make their registration then will proceed to a pre-operative holding area. In this case, medical staff will assist the patient with the surgical preparation.

Meanwhile, it would be best to wear comfortable, loose clothes. This way, the patient can easily change out of and into the surgery. Moreover, it is better not to wear jewelry nor bring anything valuable. Additionally, do not use contact lenses. Instead, take eyeglasses with you just in case you need to fill out any document.

Additionally, your doctor might require you to drink two bottles of Gatorade (12 ounces each). However, you have to consume your first bottle 12 hours before the surgery. Meanwhile, the second bottle will be 4 hours before on morning of surgery. Along with this, you will also need to take 1000mg of acetaminophen or Tylenol.

Overall, it would be best to arrive at the surgery center an hour or more prior to the schedule of surgery. This way, patients can fulfill the remaining requirements without being in a hurry. Besides that, please bring only the essentials and nothing more.

 

Conclusion

Given these points, patients may take what is according to the prescription of the doctor. Aside from that, it is essential to follow the instructions of the surgeon and the surgical team. If they instructed you to stop taking certain medications, a patient must follow. Otherwise, patients will increase the risk of bleeding during the surgical procedure. Medical instructions are essential to reduce the risk of surgical failure. You can go to this link if you feel pain or discomfort after your surgery.

 

References:

Medication and Surgery: Before Your Operation, Facs.org, Revised May 2019, https://www.facs.org/education/patient-education/patient-resources/prepare/medications

Pre-Procedure/Surgical Instructions for Adults, Eehealth.org, Accessed July 05, 2021, https://www.eehealth.org/-/media/files/edward-elmhurst/services/surgery/edward-adult-surgical-instructions.pdf?la=en

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