Having surgery?

Before surgery you may be referred for pre-operative investigations, such as blood tests, ECG and x-rays.

You will be notified of your surgery date, time and other instructions well in advance of your actual surgery date. Arrival time will generally be one to two hours prior to the surgical start time.

• Please bring your CareCard and other form of identification with you.
• Wear comfortable clothes that are easy to put on and off, for example, shirts that button up the front or loose fitting slacks.
• Please leave all valuables at home. Remove all rings and wedding bands if possible.
• Do not wear contact lenses.
• Bring a current list of your medications and dosages for your medical chart.
• Bring your cold therapy unit if you obtained one.
• Bring any other braces, slings, post-op shoes you may have for application following surgery.

Fasting and Medications: unless you receive other specific instructions, have NOTHING to eat or drink (nothing by mouth) past midnight (12:00am) the night before your surgery. Continue to take the following medications while fasting. (Take your medication with only a SIP of water on the day of your surgery.)

• Heart Medications
• Ulcer Medications
• High Blood Pressure Medications
• Seizure Medications
• Asthma/Puffers Medications
• Birth Control Pill

Do not take any other medications (including over-the-counter drugs and vitamins) except for the ones listed above. Please follow the instructions below if you are on any of the following medications. If you have questions about your medications, please talk to your family doctor or pharmacist.

Aspirin or anti-inflammatory medications: You will need to stop taking these 7 days before surgery to minimize bleeding. Acetaminophen, Tylenol, Tylenol #3, Tramacet, or other equivalents are safe to take as they do not prolong bleeding time.

Blood Thinners/Anticoagulants: If you are taking blood thinners such as Plavix, Iscover, Clopidogrel or Warfarin, Coumadin, Apixaban, Rivaroxaban etc. these will be reviewed by the anaesthesiologist, but generally need to be stopped 5 days prior to surgery. Bleeding can be uncontrollable on these medications, and your surgery may be cancelled if these medications have not been stopped. Please discuss the potential need for sort acting bridging therapies with your family physician or hematologist in advance of your surgery date.

Patients with Diabetics:

• Do not take oral anti-diabetes medications on the date of your surgery
• Do take one –half your morning long acting insulin dose (Lente, NPH).
• Do not take any regular insulin.
• Bring your insulin with you the day of surgery.

If you are unsure whether to stop any other medications you might be on please discuss this with your family physician as they can help manage which medications should be stopped prior to surgery.

Please consider having any tooth, gum, bladder or bowel problems treated before surgery to reduce the risk of infection after an orthopaedic operation.

Eat a well-balanced diet, supplemented by a daily multivitamin with iron. If you are overweight, losing weight before surgery will help decrease the stress you place on your new joint. However, you should not diet during the month before your surgery.

If you smoke, you should stop or cut down to reduce your surgical risks and improve your opportunity for a successful recovery.

Report ANY infections to your surgeon. Surgery may need to be postponed until the infection has been cleared up. Urinary Tract Infections significantly increase your risk of serious surgical complications. Avoid cuts and abrasions to the operative extremity prior to your surgery (let that bramble be).