Surgery is a scary thing for most of people who undergo surgery. From the day you were told that you have to undergo surgery, thousands of questions will come in to your mind.
- What will they do to me during the surgery?
- What will happen to me during and after surgery?
- Will the surgery be successful?
- Will I be as normal as before?
- Will I be OK?
- Will I gain consciousness back again?
For many people get positive answers to above questions as most of the surgeries is a success thanks to the advancement of medical knowledge as well as the skills of the surgeons.
There are many complications associated with surgery, but don’t be afraid, because the doctors are clever enough to manage them very well. The aim of this article is not to scare people. It is to give people a clear idea about what will happen to them after surgery.
I will more stress on complications, but stressing the fact that most of these complications are rare and even they did arise, most are managed well. The complications also may vary according the type of surgery, the health status of the patient, the facilities available and the skills of the surgeon.
What will Happen Immediately after Surgery?
After the surgery is over you will be transferred to a place called recovery room. At this time you still might be unconscious or might be starting to gain consciousness. There you will be managed by anaesthetics, who will monitor you and help you to regain consciousness. There they will be keep a close eye on you to make sure that you will not develop any complications. They will monitor your blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory rate, etc.
Problems that could occur can be in any of the following systems.
- Respiratory System
- Cardiovascular System
- Central Nervous System
- Gastrointestinal System
- Liver Problems
- Renal Problems
Respiratory problems that can arise immediately after surgery
Respiratory problems are very common immediately following surgery. This is mainly due to two reasons.
- Due to anaesthesia – Anaesthesia is used to make the person unconscious during surgery or to make a certain part of the body insensitive to external stimuli, so person will not feel pain or any discomfort. Most of these anaesthesia are respiratory depressants. That means that they reduce the rate and depth of the respiration. They also diminish protective airway reflexes like cough and sneeze reflex putting the airway into danger.
Anaestheic procedure in general anaesthesia where the patient is kept totally unconscious also includes inserting various instruments (endotracheal tube) into the airway. These procedures can also harm the respirator tract.
- The site of surgery also play role in producing the respiratory problems.
The problems that can occur are listed below.
Airway obstruction –
The obstruction could be either inn upper airway or lower airway.
Causes for upper airway obstruction–
1. Tongue falling back – This is because the upper airway muscle tone is diminished in an unconscious person. As the airway is obstructed, the air cannot reach the lungs. If this happens you will be put in a semiprone position with the head tilted and the chin lifted. They may also put an artificial airway. These techniques are well enough to solve the problem. Therefore you won’t even notice that there was a problem.
2. Laryngeal spasm – As I mentioned earlier the anaesthetic procedure involves instrumentation of the airway. These instruments can damage the airway. This can lead to bleeding. These factors irritate which cause spasms. This causes reflex closure of the vocal codes. The obstruction could be complete or partial. If it is the later, there will be noisy breathing. This is managed by clearing the secretions by suction and mask ventilation by 100% oxygen.
3. Laryngeal oedema
4. Vocal cord paralysis
5. Heamatoma formation
6. Tracheomalacia
Cause for lower airway obstruction –
1. Bronchospasms
2. Pulmonary aspiration
Other respiratory problems -
1. Pneumothorax
2. Pulmonary oedema
3. Pulmonary embolism
4. Hypoventilation
5. Post operative hypoxaemia
What are the cardiovascular complications that could occur after surgery?
1. Hypotension
2. Hypertension
3. Cardiac arrhythmias
What are the neurological complications that could occur after surgery?
1. Prolonged unconsciousness
2. Restlessness
3. Confusion
What are the gastrointestinal complications that could occur after surgery?
1. Nausea
2. Vomiting
What are the liver complications that could occur after surgery?
1. Jaundice
2. Viral hepatitis
3. Sepsis
4. Fulminant hepatic failure
What are the renal complications that could occur after surgery?
1. Oliguria
Apart from above complications, the patient might have temperature abnormalities, and anaphylaxis
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