Eye Surgery with Dr. Commmons
Again and again I hear patients mention that they would have considered a plastic surgery procedure years earlier had they know it could be done with such reasonable pain control. We all fear pain. I do not want to be hurt! Do you? Of course not. A little thought and planning gos a long way in minimizing pain in procedures such as the facelift, rhinoplasty, breast augmentation, breast reduction, abdominoplasty, liposuction, otoplasty, forehead lift, and eyelid lift. The surgeon must plan to minimize pain and discuss these plans with patients and then patients must cooperate to keep all discomfort at the minimum. What are the ingredients or menu of less pain in plastic surgery or any surgery for that matter. The list of factors that are important for less pain include discussion and understanding between surgeon and patient, cooperation, adequate pain medicine that actually agrees with you, anti nausea medication that facilitates taking pain medication, sedation for sleep, bupiveracaine (marcaine), pain pumps placed within the surgical site, a firm concept of the fact the the wound at rest heals best, ice and cool packs, adequate help after surgery, and an attentive surgeon readily available if pain becomes a factor. There are many types of pain medications but clearly the narcotic medications works the best in the early post operative period. Percocet gives good relief with minimal nausea. Remember however that all narcotic medication can stimulate nausea. Some patients prefer no narcotics and this may work well. Patient and doctor need to discuss the types of medication that may have worked in the patients past experiences. Anti nausea medications help prevent dreaded feelings of upset stomach and the finest anti nausea medication is Ondansitron (Zofran). Call Maximart Pharmacy in Palo Alto because they offer this wonderful medication at a great price. The best form of Ondansatron is the 8 mg sublingual tablet taken every 4 hours if needed under the tongue. Rectal suppositories of Phenergan work but who wants a rectal suppository, no one. Sedation at bedtime helps pain medicine do its work and I think patients do well with Ambien. Ambien has been cleared for climbers on Mt Everest so its very safe. The Marcaine pain pumps come with various names including Pain Buster and such and work extremely well for abdominoplasty surgery and sometimes other procedures. No tummy tuck should ever be done without a Marcaine pain device. Good old fashioned coolness and ice especially is still one of the great pain remedies. While selected steady activity after surgery helps prevent pneumonia and thrombophlebitis, nevertheless the wound at rest heals best and hurts less so be sensible. Discuss pain with you Plastic Surgeon in great detail. Doctors are generally kind souls who are merciful and do not want you to hurt unnecessarily. Get a great plan that you feel comfortable with. Lastly prepare yourself and your home and care team so all is easy for you after surgery. You do not want to be running to you local store for the milk and soup you should have purchased pre operation. Regarding soup, get low salt. Salt (Sodium) causes swelling or at least makes it worse and swelling hurts so avoid salt. Low salt means less than 1500 mg a day. Lastly, remember there is a correlation with more bruising and more pain. Remember to avoid substances that interfere with blood clotting 2 weeks before and after surgery. These include aspirin, ibupropfen, fish oil, Vitamin E, and many Herbs to name a few. Get the advoidance list from your Plastic Surgeon before surgery. Does arnica montana reduce bruising. There is absolutely no proof that it does but if you feel better taking it please do so because it will not harm you beyond its cost of a few dollars. So you are now ready for you minimally painfully Plastic Surgery experience
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