GENERAL SURGERY RISKS RESULTS

Persons who are obese, smoke, have bleeding tendencies, or are over 60 need to follow special precautions, as do persons who have recently experienced such illnesses as pneumonia or a heart attack. People taking such medications as heart and blood pressure medicine, blood thinners, muscle relaxants, tranquilizers, anticonvulsants, insulin, or sedatives may require special laboratory tests prior to surgery and special monitoring during surgery. Special precautions may be necessary for persons using such mind-altering drugs as narcotics, psychedelics, hallucinogens, marijuana, sedatives, or cocaine since these drugs may interact with the anesthetic agents used during surgery. Risks
One of the risks involved with general surgery is the potential for postoperative complications. These complications include but are not limited to pneumonia, internal bleeding, and wound infection as well as adverse reactions to anesthesia.

Normal results
Advances in diagnostic and surgical techniques have greatly increased the success rate of general surgery. Contemporary procedures are less invasive than those practiced a decade or more ago. The results include reduced length of hospital stays, shortened recovery times, decreased postoperative pain, and decreases in the size and extent of surgical incisions. The length of time required for a full recovery varies with the procedure.

Morbidity and mortality rates
Mortality from general surgical procedures is uncommon. The most common causes of mortality are adverse reactions to anesthetic agents or drugs used to control pain, postsurgical clot formation in the veins, and postsurgical heart attacks or strokes. Abnormal results from general surgery include persistent pain, swelling, redness, drainage, or bleeding in the surgical area and surgical wound infection, resulting in slow healing.

Alternatives
For the removal of diseased or nonvital tissue, there is no alternative to surgery. Alternatives to general surgery depend on the condition being treated. Medications, acupuncture, or hypnosis are used to relieve pain. Radiation is an occasional alternative for shrinking growths. Chemotherapy may be used to treat cancer. Some foreign bodies may remain in the body without harm.