Pre-operative instructions, list of medications to avoid, and outcome questionnaire to complete.
Please complete the included outcome questionnaire and email back to carroyo@discmdgroup.com BEFORE your surgery.
Pre-Operative Surgical Instructions
Do NOT eat, drink, or smoke after MIDNIGHT the day before your surgery!
• This includes gum, mints, water, candy and cigarettes. Any stomach contents may pose a serious problem with the use of anesthesia.
• If you are taking any medications, and have been instructed to take these regardless of your scheduled surgery, take the pill with a small sip of water.
• Failure to follow these instructions may result in your surgery being delayed or canceled.
Someone will contact you the day before your surgery
• If your surgery is on Monday, they will call you on the Friday afternoon before your surgical date.
• If you DO NOT receive a call the night before, call our office at 310-574-0400 so that we can confirm your surgery time.
Stop ALL anti-inflammatory medications 7-10 days prior to your date of surgery
• These medications will increase the risk of bleeding problems during surgery.
• Please see attached sheet that specifies which medications you should not take. If your medication is not on this list and you are unsure, please contact your internist to confirm if you need to stop the medication.
• You may take Tylenol, Tramadol, Norco, Percocet, Vicodin, Flexeril, Lyrica, or Neurontin.
• You are to shower with an anti-bacterial soap solution (Hibiclens) for 3 days leading up to surgery. You can purchase this at any store or pharmacy.
Day of Surgery
• Leave all valuables at home.
• Family and friends may wait in the surgical waiting area while you are in surgery.
• Dr. Shifflett will speak to your family once the surgery is complete.
• A family member may stay overnight with you if necessary.
• Detailed post-operative instructions will be provided prior to discharge home.
When to call the doctor?
• Notify Dr. Shifflett’s office at 310-574-0400 or 949-988-7876 if your health status changes or you develop symptoms such as fever, cough, sore throat, or flu-like symptoms, prior to surgery.
• Temperature above 101.5 degrees
Pre-op Outcome Questionnaire
• If you are willing, please complete the enclosed pre-operative outcome questionnaire that Dr. Shifflett uses for research purposes; the data will be anonymized.
• You may either complete and email back to kylie.thomas@scasurgery.com or hand deliver to Dr. Shifflett on the day of surgery.
• Dr. Shifflett is actively engaged in conducting research and presents nationally and internationally on spine surgery topics. He thanks you for completing this questionnaire.
MEDICATIONS TO AVOID BEFORE SURGERY
*The following drugs contain aspirin or other products, which can cause increased bleeding during surgery and should not be taken for 7-10 days prior to surgery. If you need to take something for relief of pain, you may take Tylenol, Tramadol, Norco, Percocet, Vicodin, Flexeril, Lyrica, or Neurontin.
Advil Aleve Alka Seltzer Alcohol Anacin Anaprox Ansaid Arthrotec Aspirin APC BC Tablets or Power BC Cold Powder Brufen Buffering Cama Arthritis Pain Reliever Cataflam Celebrex Cephalegesics Clinoril Cogesprin Coricidin Coumadin Darvon Darvon with Aspirin Daypro Diclofenac Diflunisal Disalcid Tablets or Capsules Doan’s Regular and ES Dolobid | Distill Duexxis Duradyne tablets Easprin Cotrin Empirin Enbrel Equagesic tablets Etodolac Excedrin Feldene Florinal Flurbinoprofen Sodium 4 Way Cold Tablets Goody’s Headache Powder or Tablets Ibuprofen Indomethacin Indocin Ketoprofen Lodine Meclomen Medipren Meloxicam Midol 200 Midol PMS caplets Mobic Motrin Nabumeton Naprelan | Naprosyn Naprosyn Pepto Bismal Tablets and Liquid Naproxen Norgesic Forte Orudis Oruvail Oxaprozin Percodan Persantine Piroxicam Plavix Quagesic Relafen Robaxisal Rufen Sine Aid Soma Compound Sulindac Trandate Trental Trilisate Vanquish Vitamin E Voltaren Wesprin Zavtrin Zoprin All Herbal supplements |
*Before stopping any of these medications, be sure to consult the physician who ordered them. Some medications such as Coumadin (Warfarin) and Plavix, are ordered to prevent or treat serious conditions such as “deep venous thrombosis,” “pulmonary embolisms,” “atrial fibrillation,” and other heart problems.
*This is not an all-inclusive list. If you are unsure if you are taking an aspirin product or anti-inflammatory, please ask your doctor, nurse, or pharmacist.