Postoperative period: peculiarities of the course, possible complications

The postoperative period starts from the moment of the end of the operative intervention and continues until the time when the patient's working capacity is fully restored. Depending on the complexity of the operation, this period can last from a few weeks to several months. Conditionally it is divided into three parts: an early postoperative period, lasting up to five days, late - from the sixth day to discharge, and remote. The latter occurs outside the hospital, but it is no less important.

After the operation, the patient is transported on a gurney to the intensive care unit and placed on the bed (most often on the back). For the patient delivered from the operating room, it is necessary to observe until he regains consciousness after a general anesthesia: when exiting from it, vomiting or excitement manifested in abrupt movements is possible. The main tasks that are solved in the early postoperative period are prevention of possible complications after surgery and their timely elimination, correction of metabolic disorders, maintenance of respiratory and cardiovascular systems. The patient's condition is facilitated by using analgesics, including narcotics. Of great importance is the adequate selection of painkillers, which, at the same time, should not inhibit the vital functions of the body, including consciousness. After relatively simple operations (for example, appendectomy), anesthesia is usually required only in the first day.

The early postoperative period in most patients is usually accompanied by an increase in temperature to subfebrile values. Normally, it falls to the fifth or sixth day. In elderly people after surgery, the temperature may remain normal. If it rises to high figures, or only from 5-6 days, this is a sign of an unfavorable completion of the operation - as well as the strongest pains in its place, which after three days only increase, not weaken.

The postoperative period is fraught with complications from the cardiovascular system - in particular, in the elderly and in the event that the blood loss during it was significant. Sometimes there is shortness of breath: in elderly patients, it can be moderately expressed after the operation. If it appears only on day 3-6, this indicates the development of dangerous postoperative complications: pneumonia, pulmonary edema, peritonitis, etc., especially in combination with pallor and pronounced cyanosis. Among the most dangerous complications are postoperative bleeding - from the wound or internal, manifested by a sharp pallor, increased pulse, thirst. In case of these symptoms, you should immediately call a doctor.

In some cases, after an operation, a festering wound can develop. Sometimes it manifests itself on the second or third day, however, most often makes itself felt on the fifth to the eighth day, and often after the patient is discharged. In this case, redness and swelling of the joints are noted, as well as a sharp pain when they are palpated. At the same time, with deep suppuration, especially in elderly patients, its external signs, in addition to soreness, may be absent, although the purulent process itself can be quite extensive. To prevent complications after the operation, adequate care for the patient and strict compliance with all medical prescriptions are necessary. In general, how the postoperative period will proceed and what its duration will be depends on the patient's age and health status and, of course, on the nature of the intervention.

Before the full recovery of the patient after surgical treatment usually takes several months. This applies to all types of surgical operations - including, and plastic surgery. For example, after such a seemingly relatively simple operation as rhinoplasty, the postoperative period lasts up to 8 months. Only after this period can you estimate how successfully the nose correction operation was performed and how it will look.