After Surgery: Discomfort and Complications

Posted on

Jun 09, 2021

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What are some common post-op discomforts?
The amount of discomfort you have after surgery depends on many things, includingthe type of surgery. Typical discomforts may include:


Nausea and vomiting from general anesthesia


Sore throat caused by the tube placed in the windpipe for breathing during surgery


Soreness, pain,and swelling around the incision site or minor pain around IV sites


Restlessness and sleeplessness


Thirst


Constipation and gas




What complications may occur after surgery?
Complications can sometimes occur after surgery. The most common complications include:
Shock
Shock is a severe drop in blood pressure that causes adangerous slowing of blood flow throughout the body. Shock may be caused by blood loss, infection, spine injury, or metabolic problems. Treatment may include any or all of the following:


Stopping any blood loss


Helping with breathing. This might be with a breathing machine.


Reducing heat loss


Giving IV fluids or blood


Giving extra oxygen


Prescribing medicines to help raise blood pressure.


Bleeding
Rapid blood loss from the site of surgery, for example, can lead to shock. Treatment of rapid blood loss may include:


IV fluids or blood plasma


Blood transfusion


More surgery to control the bleeding


Wound infection
When bacteria enter the site of surgery, an infection can happen. Infections can delay healing. Wound infections can spread to nearby organs or tissue, or to distant areas through the bloodstream. Treatment of wound infections may include:


Antibiotics


Surgery or procedure to clean or drain the infected area


Deep vein thrombosis
A deep vein thrombosis is a blood clot in a large vein deep inside a leg, arm, or other part of the body. Symptoms are pain, swelling, tenderness, and skin redness in a leg, arm, or other area. If you have these symptoms, call your healthcare provider. In some cases, the clot can break off and travel to the lungs or brain. This can cause a pulmonary embolism or a stroke. Compression stockings are often used for treatment. They can also prevent DVTs.
Pulmonary embolism
The clot can break away from the vein and travel to the lungs. This clot is called a pulmonary embolism. In the lungs, the clot can cut off the flow of blood. This is a medical emergency and may cause death. If you have the following symptoms, call 911 or get emergency help right away. Symptoms are chest pain, trouble breathing, coughing (may cough up blood), sweating, very low blood pressure, fast heartbeat, light headedness, and fainting. Treatment depends on the location and size of the blood clot. It may include:


Blood-thinner medicines (anticoagulants) to prevent more clots


Thrombolytic medicines to dissolve clots


Surgery or other procedures to remove the clot


Lung problems
Sometimes lung problems happen because you dont do deep breathing and coughing exercises within 48 hours of surgery. They may also happen from pneumonia or from inhaling food, water, or blood into the airways. Symptoms may include wheezing, chest pain, shortness of breath, fever, and cough. Getting up and walking around, deep breathing, and coughing often can help reduce the chances for these problems. Treatment depends on the lung problem and the cause.
Urinary retention
This means you arent able to empty your bladder. This may be caused by the anesthesia or certain surgeries. It is often treated by using a thin tube (catheter) to drain the bladder. This is kept in place until you have regained bladder control. Sometimes medicines to stimulate the bladder may be given.
Reaction to anesthesia
This is rare, but it does happen. Symptoms can range from mild to severe. Treatment of allergic reactions includes stopping specific medicines that may be causing the reaction. You may also be given other medicines to treat the allergy. Tell your healthcare team about any allergies you have before the surgery to minimize this risk. If an allergic reaction does occur, ask what caused the allergy so you can stay away from it for any future surgery.


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