Before Surgery
Physical Therapy
Many patients will attend physical therapy or complete a home exercise program for core and gluteal strengthening to see if symptoms alleviate prior to proceeding with surgery. Many patients will complete traditional land based therapy, but aquatic physical therapy can also be appropriate for some patients.
Scheduling
You will meet with an administrative assistant to schedule your surgery. He or she will help you pick a surgery date, and give you more information about the location of the surgery and other instructions to help you prepare for surgery. They will have you sign a Surgical Consent Form, which gives us permission to proceed with surgery.
You will have an assessment to review your medical history and determine if testing is necessary. Depending upon your age, medical health and smoking status, you may need pre-admission testing to identify any issues that could complicate the anesthesia or surgery, and whether or not you are healthy enough to safely undergo surgery.
Medication and Supplements
Before your surgery, tell your doctor during your appointment about any medicines you take, including vitamins and supplements. Keep these general points in mind:
- Do not take any herbal medicines or supplements for up to 14 days before surgery.
- Do not take non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) for up to 10 days before surgery, including naproxen (i.e., Aleve) and ibuprofen (i.e., Advil or Motrin).
- If you take any medicine to thin your blood or to prevent blood clots make sure to discuss with both your surgeon and your prescribing physician whether you should stop your medication prior to the surgery.
- If you take medicine for diabetes, you may need to stop or change your dose before surgery. Talk to the doctor who manages your diabetes to see how you should adjust your medication the day of surgery. Also, you will need to check your blood sugar the morning of your surgery. If it is above 250 or less than 70, call your doctor for more instructions. High or low blood sugar may result in a delay or cancelation of your surgery.
If you are a smoker, or use other tobacco products, quit at least four weeks before and for as long as eight weeks after surgery to help your wounds heal and to reduce your risk of infection.
Please have a family member(s), or friend(s) there to help on the day of your surgery. You will need them to take you to and from the hospital on your surgery date (you will not be allowed to drive home), to help access essentials at home and to assist with cold therapy.
Prepare for hip surgery
Many hip arthroscopy patients will require a hip brace for a short period of time after their surgery. This is set up through the surgeon’s office. You will need either crutches or a walker to help you walk after your hip surgery. Your surgeon’s office can help you obtain these the day of your surgery if you don’t have these readily available.
Physical therapy will start 1-3 days after surgery depending on your surgeon’s preference. You will need to contact your clinic of choice to schedule this. Please refer to the information received from your surgeon for when to start these sessions.
You may need to arrange transportation to and from appointments for a short period of time after your surgery. We ask that patients do no resume driving until they are off of all narcotic pain medications and off of crutches or walkers. The surgical leg should also be pain free and strong enough to operate the car safely.
You will receive a call one to two days before your surgery to give you your surgery and arrival times. Before you arrive for surgery:
- Do not shave anywhere on your surgical leg.
- Do not eat, drink or smoke after midnight the night before your surgery. This includes no gum, breath mints or candy. Brush your teeth and rinse your mouth, but do not swallow anything.
- You MAY have up to 20oz (ounces) of CLEAR LIQUIDS between midnight and up to 2 hours before your arrival time for surgery. Clear liquids include plain water, apple juice, Coke or Sprite, sports drinks, plain tea and black coffee (NO milk or cream). You may take your morning medicine with water.
- Take a shower the evening prior and the morning of surgery using the anti-microbial (CHG) soap provided to you by the office staff.
- Do not put anything on your skin such as makeup, lotions, deodorant, perfume or cologne.
- Do not wear contact lenses, jewelry/body piercings or nail polish.
You should wear comfortable, loose-fitting clothing. Leave your valuables at home, including jewelry and money. Bring only these essentials to the hospital: photo ID; insurance card; your co-pay; a list of medications and dosages; and cases for dentures, glasses and hearing aids, if worn.