What are Pre-Surgery and Surgery Procedures for Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Patients?
Contact us or you can book an appointment online by clicking the “Book an Appointment” button near the top of the page. In these Whiteboard Series videos, Dr. J. Michael Bennett describes the procedures often used to prepare an orthopedic or sports medicine patient for surgery. He describes the pre-surgical procedures a patient can expect after arriving at the surgical center or hospital and then he talks about surgery procedures inside the operating room Doctor Bennett’s goal is to better prepare his patients for the experience of surgery and to review questions that patients should ask their surgeons before the day of surgery.
Orthopedics and Sports Medicine Pre-Surgery Procedures
In this video, Dr. Bennett describes the pre-surgery procedures his patients can expect after they arrive at the hospital or outpatient surgical center.
It all starts in the preoperative area when you the patient show up the surgical center or the hospital. You’re guided to the pre-op area, and that’s where a nurse will combine make sure you’re comfortable and talk to about the upcoming procedure. Next, the surgeon will go over the consent form with you for the procedure you’re going to have. If you’re having surgery on an extremity like a leg or an arm, make sure the surgeon signs the appropriate extremity that they’re going to operate on. It’s also important that you understand exactly what you’re going to have done and that this procedure is written on the consent. Your surgeon will go over the risks and benefits and complications of the surgery before the procedure, and this is best done before the day of surgery.
Next, the anesthesiologist will discuss the anesthesia options. Your anesthesia options will usually be determined by your health conditions and the type of surgery that you’re having done. Some patients with serious medical conditions like heart disease might not be good candidates for general anesthesia. Those patients might have a local block or perhaps an epidural or what we call a “beer block” where we numb the arm below the shoulder with a tourniquet to trap the anesthetic in the area where we’re operating. The most common procedure for using a beer block is a carpal tunnel syndrome release that can be done with the patient awake.
If you do undergo general anesthesia, we can use extremity blocks which keep you pain-free for the next 24 to 48 hours after surgery. This gives you a chance to gauge your pain and take your pain medications accordingly after you’ve recovered from the general anesthesia. So it’s very important that you discuss the possibility of using extremity blocks before you go to surgery with your anesthesiologist. It’s a great option for many of the patients out there, particularly for extremity surgery.
After you discuss the surgery with your surgeon and the anesthesia with the anesthesiologist, then you’ll be moved into the operating room. If you have a question about the video, please contact our office to make an appointment with Dr. Bennett.
Orthopedics and Sports Medicine Surgery Procedures
This video is a behind-the-scenes look at what happens in the operating room on the day of surgery. Dr. Bennett demonstrates how patients are positioned on the surgical table, depending on the type of surgery and whether the surgery is being done arthroscopically or is an open procedure. He also describes the equipment used during surgery including the C-arm which allows the surgeon to use imaging called C-arm fluoroscopy during the procedure.
Dr. Bennett emphasizes the point that if you have any questions about your surgery, please discuss your questions thoroughly with your physician well before the date of surgery. You do not want to wait until the day of surgery to raise important questions with your surgeon on topics like the risks of surgery, treatment options, and the likely outcomes. These important questions need to be discussed and thought about well before the day of surgery. You should be relaxed and confident about your procedure and confident about your surgeon.
Dr. J. Michael Bennett is a Board Certified Orthopedic Surgeon and Fellowship Trained Sports Medicine Specialist with offices in Houston, near the Houston Galleria, and in Sugar Land at the corner of Sweetwater and Lexington Boulevards, near First Colony Mall.
