Before Surgery: Your Top 6 Hospital Risks

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Pneumonia: Reducing Your Risk

WebMD Medical Reference

Getting pneumonia after surgery can be quite serious. According to the CDC, studies have suggested that pneumonia acquired in the hospital can be fatal as often as 33% of the time. So you need to make an effort to protect yourself.

Follow your doctor's instructions about not eating or drinking before surgery. Usually, your doctor will tell you not to eat or drink after midnight the night before surgery. You must follow that advice. If you're going under anesthesia and still have food in your stomach, fluid or vomit may back up and get into your lungs. This can lead to one type of pneumonia called aspiration pneumonia. Happily, just following your doctor's advice sharply reduces the risk.
Ask everyone -- family, friends, doctors, and nurses -- to wash their hands. Pneumonia can be caused by bacteria and some viruses. So you need to make sure that people who touch you aren't transmitting any nasty germs.
Ask when you can start moving around. Lying flat on your back for a long period can increase your risk of developing pneumonia. So find out when it's safe for you to start sitting up and walking around.
Do breathing exercises. Try taking 10-15 big, deep breaths each hour, says Peter B. Angood, MD, vice president and chief patient safety officer of The Joint Commission. You may also use an inspirometer to check your lung function.
Stop smoking. Quitting has many health advantages, of course. If you can't really quit before surgery, stop for at least a week or two. Giving your lungs a break will make them stronger and lower your risk of pneumonia, says Carolyn Clancy, MD, director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) in Rockville, Md.

Reviewed by Celia E. Dominguez, MD, July 20, 2007 .

SOURCES: Peter B. Angood, MD, vice president, chief patient safety officer, The Joint Commission, Oakbridge Terrace, Ill.; co-director, International Center for Patient Safety. Dale Bratzler, DO, MPH, medical director, Hospital Interventions Quality Improvement Organization Support Center (QIOSC), Oklahoma Foundation for Medical Quality, Oklahoma City. CDC web site: "Overview of Pneumonia in Healthcare Settings." Carolyn Clancy, MD, director, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), Department of Health and Human Services, Rockville, Md. Fran Griffin, RRT, MPA, director, Institute for Healthcare Improvement, Cambridge, Mass.

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Are You at Risk of Deep
Vein Thrombosis Blood Clots?

Important Safety Information Full PI Incl. Boxed WARNING

Important Safety Information

LOVENOX^® Full Prescribing Information

Certain procedures, called "epidural/spinal anesthesia" and "spinal puncture," may be used as a normal part of hospitalization. Patients requiring these procedures while being treated with LOVENOX^® (enoxaparin sodium injection) or other low-molecular-weight heparins are at risk of developing a blood clot in or around the spine. This condition may result in long-term or permanent paralysis.

LOVENOX^® is not the same as "unfractionated heparin" or other drugs called "low-molecular-weight heparins." Therefore, these drugs cannot be used interchangeably with LOVENOX^®.

LOVENOX^® can alter the blood's ability to clot. Patients treated with LOVENOX^®, who also have conditions affecting the clotting system, must be carefully monitored by their physician. Adjusting the dose of LOVENOX^® may be necessary for patients who have certain forms of kidney disease. All patients receiving LOVENOX^®, as well as other anticoagulants, should be carefully monitored for bleeding by their physician. Bleeding can occur at any site with LOVENOX^® use.

Platelet drops, known as "thrombocytopenia," can occur with LOVENOX^® use. Cases of a related condition called "heparin-induced thrombocytopenia" have been observed in clinical practice. If you have had this condition, you must notify your healthcare professional. Your physician may perform blood tests to monitor for the occurrence of any drop in platelet count.

The use of LOVENOX^® has not been adequately studied in pregnant women with artificial (mechanical) heart valves.

LOVENOX^® should not be used in patients with an allergy or sensitivity reaction to the active ingredient called enoxaparin sodium, heparin, or pork products, and in patients with active major bleeding.

Common side effects include mild local reactions or irritation at the site of injection, pain, bruising, and redness of skin.

For specific questions about your health, you should always consult your physician or a qualified healthcare professional who is responsible for your care.

Please see Full Prescribing Information including boxed WARNING, for additional important information.