Your medications may need to be adjusted before your surgery.1 It is important to fully inform your surgical team about all of the medications you are taking before your surgery, including prescriptions, vitamins, minerals, herbs, drugs, or any other supplements. Even though you are not eating, you may be able to take your routine morning medications with a small sip of water.
Medications to discuss with your doctor:
Medications |
Examples
|
Notes
|
---|---|---|
Diabetes (blood sugar)
|
Insulin, metformin, dulaglutide (Trulicity®), empagliflozin (Jardiance®), pioglitazone (Actos®), insulin glargine (Lantus®) |
Since you will not be eating before surgery, most diabetic medication is usually adjusted—pioglitazone may not be stopped before surgery and Lantus will be reduced by 50%.
|
Pain, anxiety, depression, or sleep
|
Hydrocodone (Vicodin®), tramadol (Ultram®), oxycodone with acetaminophen (Percocet®), pregabalin (Lyrica®), diazepam (Valium®) |
These can affect your pain control plan and side effects from opioid use. (3) Go to facs.org/safepaincontrol for more information. |
Nicotine, alcohol, marijuana or cannabidiol (CBD) products (used for medicinal or recreational use)
|
Smoking, vaping, patch, oral
|
Use of any of these products may affect your heart rate, blood pressure, and pain control during and after your procedure. (4–6) Go to facs.org/quitsmoking to help you quit smoking before your surgery. |
American College of Surgeons Glucose Control Checklist
Anticoagulation and Antiplatelet Therapy in Urologic Practice: ICUD and AUA Review Paper
Perioperative Management of Patients on Anticoagulants
Peri-Operative Management of Anticoagulation and Antiplatelet Therapy
Perioperative Management of Antithrombotic. American Academy of Ophthalmology
Revised May 2019
This information is published to educate you about preparing for your surgical procedures. It is not intended to take the place of a discussion with a qualified surgeon who is familiar with your situation. It is important to remember that each individual is different, and the reasons and outcomes of any operation depend upon the patient’s individual condition.
The American College of Surgeons is a scientific and educational organization that is dedicated to the ethical and competent practice of surgery; it was founded to raise the standards of surgical practice and to improve the quality of care for the surgical patient. The ACS has endeavored to present information for prospective surgical patients based on current scientific information; there is no warranty on the timeliness, accuracy, or usefulness of this content.