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After surgery, you'll be moved back to the ward or a recovery room, where you'll be told how the operation went. You may feel hazy or groggy as you come round from the general anaesthetic. A nurse may give you oxygen (through tubes in your nose or a mask) to help you feel better.
- On The Day
Page last reviewed: 09 July 2024 Next review due: 09 July...
- Enhanced Recovery
At this stage, your GP should ensure you understand all the...
- Before Surgery
In the days leading up to your surgery, you'll need to make...
- Getting Back to Normal
Your doctor will have given you an idea of how long it'll...
- On The Day
Your doctor will have given you an idea of how long it'll take to get back to normal. The following links provide information and advice about recovering from specific procedures: hip replacement; knee replacement; varicose vein surgery; fibroids surgery; diverticulitis surgery; cataract surgery; arthroscopy (keyhole surgery for joints)
After major abdominal surgery with a large incision, it takes about two to three months to be able to move around comfortably. If you have had complex keyhole surgery your recovery will be quicker. If you have had a large incision in your abdomen, you should avoid lifting anything heavier than 2-3kg.
- What to Do After Surgery
- What Not to Do After Surgery
- Summary
What you do in the days and weeks after surgery can help speed healing. Here are 10 things to do after you should do when recovering after surgery.
Just as some things can help to speed your recovery, other things can hinder recovery after surgery. Here are things not to do after surgery.
Following your healthcare provider's post-op instructions and keeping your follow-up medical appointments are vital to your post-surgery recovery. Other steps are important, too, such as caring for your incision, eating and drinking properly to regain your strength, and controlling your pain. Recovery after surgery can take a while. Avoid doing too...
If you need further treatment, such as radiotherapy, chemotherapy, hormone treatment, targeted therapy or immunotherapy, it will not start until a few weeks after your operation. There are also things you can do to help your recovery:
- A drip (intravenous infusion) put into a vein in the arm or hand. This is to give you fluids until you can eat and drink normally. You may have it...
- A tube (drain) put into your wound to drain extra fluid into a small bottle. This is usually removed after a few days.
- A small tube put into a vein in the hand to give you continuous painkillers until you can take tablets.
- A small tube (catheter) put into your bladder so that urine (pee) is drained into a collection bag. The catheter is usually removed when you start...
- You can have painkillers as an injection under the skin (subcutaneous), into a muscle or directly into a vein (intravenous).
- You can also have them through a tube called a cannula, which goes into a vein in the hand. The cannula is connected to a pump. Sometimes, you can...
- You might have a continuous dose of painkiller into the spinal fluid through a fine tube and a pump. This is called an epidural.
- Moving around reduces the risk of complications and helps you recover more quickly. Breathing and leg exercises can also help reduce the risk of pr...
- In the first few days after your operation, you may have medicines to help prevent blood clots forming. These medicines are called anticoagulants....
- Removing the lymph nodes in some areas of the body, such as the armpit or groin, may increase the risk of swelling. This is called lymphoedema.
Jun 6, 2023 · Complication Prevention. Hospital Discharge. Home Care. Recovering from surgery is greatly dependent upon the type of surgery you will be having. An outpatient procedure, such as hand surgery, will have a far different recovery period than an invasive inpatient procedure like heart bypass surgery.
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Helping you to make a speedy recovery after a total knee replacement. Exercising your 'new knee' is important to make the final result as good as possible - if you don’t exercise it gently, it may become stiff. Follow closely the exercises given to you by your physiotherapist.
