You might think that undergoing surgery has nothing to do with you because you’re not the one performing it, but almost every type of surgery, minor or major, requires some form of preparation.
However, there are some things you should do even if you don’t need surgery. Making healthy life choices, such as good nutrition, routine exercise, and quitting bad habits is only the beginning.
General preparation
Depending on the diagnosis and the type of surgery, your doctor may ask you to execute a series of steps to prepare your body and yourself for the best possible outcome. But if you already have a healthy balanced diet, exercise regularly, and aren’t prone to bad habits such as smoking and drinking, your healing time might decrease significantly.
Minor surgeries usually require local anesthesia and the preparation process won’t be that thorough. However, if you need to undergo general anesthesia, the preparation process might include some of the following: no fluids or solids for a designated time before surgery, clean and/or shaved area the surgery will be performed on, various tests and/or procedures.
You may also be asked to leave jewelry or any valuables at home, remove your eye contacts, not wear makeup or nail polish, etc. You could also ask the medical staff what to do if you’re wearing prosthetic devices or dentures.
Preparing for brain surgery
Finding out that you might need brain surgery can be daunting. However, putting yourself in the hands of a well-renown neurosurgeon and spine surgeon such as Dr. Timothy Steel, who has performed thousands of complex surgeries, puts the odds of successful surgery in your favor. Brain surgery is among the hardest surgeries performed on humans, and as such, it requires an expert in their own field with years of experience under their belt.
And just like every other surgery, it requires a series of tests to confirm that you, the candidate, are fit enough to undergo surgery. Some of the tests include but aren’t limited to chest X-rays to help determine if you have lung issues, an echocardiogram, lung function tests, an ECG test to help determine if there are any heart issues, and blood tests to check the health of your kidneys and health in general.
Each of these tests is used to determine whether you’re a suitable candidate for brain surgery. You may also be asked to perform some of the aforementioned general preparation steps. And if you happen to be deemed unfit for surgery, don’t’ fret, because your doctor will inform you thoroughly about the steps you need to take to make yourself an eligible candidate.
Preparing for spinal surgery
Every surgery carries certain risks with it, but having an experienced surgeon on your side, someone with decades of experience, and a meticulous approach to surgeries is a must. Such doctors have lengthy careers, have performed many surgeries, and know every little detail that needs to be taken care of.
Just like brain surgery, spinal surgery has a set of preparation steps that need to be followed. These steps depend on the type of surgery you need to undergo, but those details will be determined during your consultation with the spine surgeon.
Some of the more general steps include quitting smoking for at least a month before the surgery, reducing alcohol consumption, reducing the pain medication prior to surgery, informing your primary care doctor and surgeon about any medications you use, etc.
Withholding details from your doctor may only negatively impact your procedure and recovery. Make sure that you go over everything with your doctor, including a list of medications you need to stop using prior to surgery.
Undergoing surgery means that you’re doing something to better your overall health, so why not start before it comes to surgery. Your body is a temple that needs to be maintained, and you need to be invested in your health from the very beginning.
Whether you need surgery or not, schedule a consultation with a physician, ask for a thorough medical checkup and work your way from there. Every physician will gladly tell you what steps to take in order to make your life healthier in the long run.
You made a good point that a lot of consultation will have to be done first when planning to get a minimally invasive spine deformity surgery. I’d like to know more about that because I’ve been thinking about talking to a doctor soon about the chronic back pain that I had since I was in college. Maybe a surgical treatment is the only way to deal with it.