Your Recovery
Important to remember! This guide provides general information about the neurosurgery process at Highland Hospital.
Your physician, nurse or other health care professionals may add or change the recommendations. Always use their recommendations first and be sure to ask questions if any information or instructions are unclear.
Your Discharge Plan
It is important for you to have a safe discharge plan before you leave the hospital to go either directly home or to a short-term rehabilitation unit, if needed and as approved by your insurance plan. The following benchmarks are the goals for a safe home discharge plan.
With good pain management and by following your physician’s instructions you will be independent and able to safely do the following:
- Get in and out of bed
- Access the needed areas of your home with adequate endurance
- Go up and down the number of stairs needed to access your home
- Dress yourself
- Personal hygiene tasks
- Home exercise program
It is important that family and friends are available to assist you for a safe home discharge plan. It is a good idea to have a family member or friend stay overnight upon discharge. Someone responsible will need to drive you home.
After Your Discharge
Inspect Your Incision for the Following:
- Increase in redness around the incision
- Presence of drainage
- Drainage that develops an odor
Please refer to your discharge instructions for specifics on how your surgeon would like you to care for your dressing and surgical incision. Please remember NO lotions, creams or ointments to the surgical incision. NO tub bathing, swimming pools or hot tubs until the surgical incision is well healed.
Controlling Discomfort
- Change your positions frequently at least every two hours.
- Take your pain medication as prescribed by your surgeon prior to physical therapy sessions.
- Gradually wean yourself from prescription medication.
Temporary Changes
- Your appetite may be poor. Drink plenty of fluids such as water, juice, milk and light soups to keep from getting dehydrated. Your desire for solid food will return.
- You may have difficulty sleeping; this is not abnormal. Don’t sleep or nap too much during the day.
- Your energy level will be decreased for the first month.
- Pain medication contains narcotics which promote constipation. Try eating more fruits such as prunes, or use stool softeners or laxatives such as Milk of Magnesia if absolutely necessary.
Call the Physician for:
- Drainage from the incision, redness or severe swelling at incision site
- Fever greater than 101.5 for more than 24 hours
- Difficulty with urination or bowel movements
- Severe pain that is not relieved with pain medication
- Nausea or vomiting for greater than 24 hours
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Signs of Blood Clots in Legs
- Swelling in thigh, calf or ankle that does not go down when elevated (especially overnight)
- Sudden increase in pain, tenderness, redness or warmth in calf
- New calf pain with ankle pumps
How to Care for Yourself After Back Surgery