How should I prepare for surgery?
Start now. Take care of yourself. Preparing for spine surgery begins a few weeks before the actual surgery. The checklist below outlines some common tasks that your surgeon may ask you to complete in the weeks prior to your surgery date. Check with your surgeon to discuss your specific pre-surgery instructions and risks.
In the weeks ahead
- Exercise under your doctor’s supervision.
- Get a physical.
- Get a dental checkup.
- Stop smoking.
- Lose weight if you’re overweight.
Closer to the surgery
- Arrange a pre-surgery visit with your doctor.
- Get lab tests that the doctor orders.
- Complete health forms.
- Prepare and freeze some meals to make it easier when you get home.
- Choose and talk to a physical therapist to learn some important activities for after surgery.
- Decide whether you’ll go to a rehab or home after surgery.
- Talk to your surgeon’s team about if or when to stop your routine medications.
The night before
- Fast – nothing to eat or drink.
- Bathe the surgical area with the antiseptic solution provided to you.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT SPINE SURGERY
Some of the images on this website depict Stryker’s products. Please speak to your doctor if you have questions about these products or anything else in this website.
The information presented is for educational purposes only. Stryker is not dispensing medical advice. Please speak to your doctor to decide if spinal surgery is right for you. Only your doctor can make the medical judgment regarding which products and treatments are right for your own individual condition.
As with any surgery, spinal surgery carries certain risks. Your surgeon will explain all the possible complications of the surgery, as well as side effects. Each spinal surgery patient will experience a different post-operative activity level, depending on his/her own individual clinical factors. Your doctor will help counsel about how to best maintain your activities in order to recover properly from your surgery. Such activities include not engaging in high-impact activities that could de-stabilize any instrumentation that may have been implanted.
Stryker Corporation or its divisions or other corporate affiliated entities own, use or have applied for the following trademarks or service marks: Stryker. All other trademarks are trademarks of their respective owners or holders.
Ask your doctor if spine surgery is right for you.
GEN-WB-24-32016