Surgery and Herbal Supplements

It might come as no surprise that part of your pre-surgery questions from your doctor usually include questions like; what over-the-counter-supplements are you taking? In an attempt to take into account any possible over the counter medicine interaction with any standard, after surgery prescription remedy your doctor might be considering giving to you. Herb supplements you might be taking could have an effect on your surgery outcome, especially when it comes to post surgery bleeding.

Herbs that thin the blood could potentially introduce a complication when suddenly the good effects of the herbal supplement, for a healthy person, change to a serious side effect for someone about to have, or fresh out of surgery. Things like Ginkgo biloba, Garlic, and Feverfew should be on the list of things you want to inform your doctor about if you are using them. So if it’s not on your pre-surgery list of supplemental concerns about over the counter supplements, don’t forget about the herbal kind of supplement. Some of the herbs you might be using could be worth mentioning in a pre-surgery meeting.

The above could also be a concern when it comes to cardiovascular health because some herbs can present potential side effects that might cause or contribute to post-operative heart palpitations, or hypertension. Doctors are aware of the fact that the effect of prescribing Lidocaine and midazolam could be intensified by herbs like Echinacea, and Goldenseal, so just in case you find out in pre-surgery meeting your doctor intends to give you Lidocaine, or Midazolam you can request more information if you are also using either of the above mentioned herbal supplements. Should you ever need emergency surgery It’s not a bad idea to carry in your personal health records a list of all the drugs or herbal supplements you are using so that doctor can take proper precaution if Echinacea and Goldenseal are part of your herbal supplement routine.

Discontinuing supplement use a couple weeks before surgery might be something you want to think about; along with sharing the list of every drug and supplement you use, with your doctor ahead of your surgery. After surgery you might want to wait until you get the all clear from your doctor before you go back to your supplement or over the counter drug use.

Herbs like Arnica and Bromelain in some cases have been shown to reduce pain, and inflammation your doctor can tell you if either of these two herbs will make a good substitute for post surgery prescription pain medicine.

Being mindful of and treating your herbal supplements with the same importance as any over-the counter drugs, when it comes to surgery, could prove helpful since even laser surgery can carry some risks for people who take Dong quai, for menopause or menstrual cycle, or St. John’s wort for anxiety or depression. Sharing your concerns and your list of supplements or other non-prescription drug use with your doctor ahead of time should all lead to a healthy happy surgery out-come.

There is another group of herbs that come in handy especially after surgery and they are of the flowering kind. Flowers do helping people recover faster after surgery; and while they may not completely understand why those in the art of plant therapy know that flowers, and other living plants, can lower heart rate, reducing blood pressure and stress in general; further reducing the need for pain medicine.