Pre-Operative Instructions
Please be advised: You will receive a call from one of our nurses the day before your surgery (Friday if you are a Monday case) between the hours of 11:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Please note that this time may be left on your home or cell answering machine or voice mail. If you have any further questions or need clarification of which medications to take or if you do not receive a phone call with your preoperative arrival time, please call 215-928-3100.
What You Need To Know About Your Medications
- Morning blood pressure and heart medications should be taken with a small sip of water if these medications are usually taken in the morning. However, we do not want you to take any medication that is a diuretic or “water pill” such as hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ) or lasix (Furosemide) or any medication that may be combined with these medications.
- If you are a diabetic and take oral medications or use insulin please do not take or use these medications the morning of your procedure. If you use insulin the evening before the procedure, please contact your primary medical doctor to determine if you should reduce the amount of insulin you use. Not eating in the morning and taking the regular dosage of insulin the night before surgery may allow the blood sugar to decrease to low levels.
- If you currently take aspirin, coumadin, ibuprofen or any other nonsteroidal anti inflammatory (NSAID) medication or blood thinners, please contact your primary medical doctor to determine if you should continue taking these medications. These medications decrease the clotting ability of the blood and therefore must be stopped prior to many surgical procedures.
- Please bring all medications currently taken with you on the day of surgery for anesthesia to review; this includes any eye drops currently used. Even those medications taken the morning of the procedure should be brought along for review.
Eating and/or Drinking Before Surgery
Do not eat or drink anything after midnight of the night before your procedure. This includes no gum, candy or mints. A small sip of water is allowed only for those patients taking morning medications.
CHILDREN are exceptions to this rule. Please use the following guidelines:
Infants 6 months to 2 years old. These children may have:
- Milk up to 8 hours before their scheduled arrival time
- Breast milk up to 3 hours before their arrival time
- Clear liquids, such as water and apple juice, up to 2 hours before their arrival time. (NO ORANGE JUICE)
Children 2 years to 5 years old. These children may have clear liquids, such as water and apple juice, up to 3 hours before their arrival time.
(NO ORANGE JUICE)
Children 5 years to 9 years old. These children may have clear liquids, such as water and apple juice, up to 4 hours before their arrival time.
(NO ORANGE JUICE)
Children 10 years old and up. These children may have clear liquids, such as water and apple juice, up to 8 hours before their arrival time.
(NO ORANGE JUICE)