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Asthma and Surgery
If you have asthma, then you are at higher risk for complications during and after a surgery. Some of these complications include shortness of breath from low oxygen levels, intubation, respiratory infection, weakened cough, latex exposure and sensitivity to some anesthetic. The likelihood of these complications depends on how severe your asthma, latex sensitivity and history of surgeries.
If you have asthma, there are certain steps you can take to help
manage your asthma and reduce the risk of complications during
surgery:
- Make sure to tell all of your doctors that you have asthma.
- Before surgery, review your level of asthma control, your medication use, and your
pulmonary function with your doctor. You and your doctor should be able to answer all of these questions and help you determine if your asthma is under control:
- Have you needed oral systemic corticosteroids for longer than 2 weeks in the past 6 months?
- Are you waking up at night coughing?
- Do you need to use your rescue inhaler more than twice per week?
- Are you using your inhaled corticosteroid everyday and at the right time?
- Are you using the inhaler correctly?
- When was the last time you had spirometry? Did it show that your asthma was in control?
- If your asthma is not under control, your doctor should provide you with an asthma
action plan and asthma medications before your surgery to
make sure to improve your lung function.
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