Cervical Disc Replacement Discharge Instructions

 

What to expect post-operatively:

·    Residual arm numbness or pain after surgery

·    Decrease in energy level. Your body is using a lot of energy to heal after surgery.

·    Get plenty of rest and eat well

·    Some soreness or mild difficulty swallowing

·    Dry/hard foods or thin liquids especially may be hard to swallow for several days

      after surgery

·    Scratchy throat/Hoarseness

·    Muscle soreness and stiffness in the neck, upper back and shoulder areas

·    Mild incision pain

 

Activity Restrictions:

·    No lifting more than 10 lbs. (about the weight of a gallon of milk)

·    No lifting anything overhead for at least 6 weeks

·    Your surgeon will discuss increasing your activities at your follow-up visit

·    You may move your neck in a gentle range of motion, no extreme movements

·    No jerking movements, jarring type activities or contact sports

Sleeping:

·    Support your neck with one pillow keeping it in a neutral position

·    Sleep on your back or side; avoid sleeping on your stomach with face down

·    Place a pillow between your legs when lying on your side to keep your spine

     inline.Adding a pillow under your arm will increase comfort and further reduce

     stress on spine

Sitting:

·    Sit with your knees at about the same level as your hips; use a footstool if needed

·    Do not sit in soft or overstuffed chairs. Firm chairs with straight backs give better

     support.

·    Recliners are OK but you may need to add pillows in order to not sink into the chair

·    Change position every 45 minutes when sitting (example: after sitting, stand and 

     walk, then you can sit again for another 45 minutes)

Driving:

·    No driving until you have been cleared by your physician to drive

·    Do not drive while taking narcotics or muscle relaxants

·    No driving while using or needing cervical collar

·    Adhere to sitting restrictions

·    You may be a passenger

·    Wear your seatbelt

 Walking: Walking is your BEST exercise

·    You are encouraged to get out and walk

·    Gradually increase your walking distance each day

·    Listen to your body; allow comfort to be your guide

 

Posture:

·    It is important to keep your body aligned by sitting and standing up straight

·    NO slouching or leaning forward

Stairs:

·    Climb as needed, but avoid making too many trips up and down stairs

Sex:

·    After 2 weeks and only when comfortable

·    Stop if causing pain

·    Check with your surgeon for more information

TED Hose:

·    Wear TED hose (compression stockings) for comfort or leg swelling. If you are up

      and moving around you do not need to wear TED hose.

Neck Brace:

·    If you have been given a soft or hard cervical neck brace wear as instructed by

     your surgeon 

Hygiene/Incision Care:

·   Always wash hands prior to touching incision

·   On day of discharge, you will have a new dressing applied. You may shower 48 hours

    after your surgery and get your incision wet. Please apply a new clean dressing over

    your incision after your first shower at home. Each day after, please be sure to wash

    your incision every day to keep incision clean and to prevent infection. Leave incision

    open to air if there is no drainage.  If drainage is present, be sure to wash incision

    every day with soap and water, pat dry and then apply a new dressing daily until

    drainage stops. Call your surgeon for drainage lasting over a week

·   In the shower allow the water to run over your incision and gently wash with soap

    and water

·   Avoid scrubbing across the incision when you shower; typically there will be steri-strips

    and/or surgical glue sealing the incision

·   Do not take a bath or soak the incision under water until the incision is completely

    healed

·   Do not remove steri-strips from incision unless otherwise specified; they will gradually

    fall off

·   No lotions, ointments or peroxide on the incision unless otherwise specified

·   Wear loose fitting clothes over your incision area to avoid irritation

·   Change bedsheets weekly until incision is completely healed

 

 NO Smoking:

·    Do not smoke as it softens bone, significantly delays healing and increases the risk

     of infection

·    Even one cigarette a day will cause problems

·    Chewing tobacco, nicotine gum or patches will also inhibit bone healing

 

 

 

 

 

Diet and Constipation:

·    You may return to your regular diet as soon as you feel like it.

·    Although you may want to start off with a soft diet if you have discomfort while 

     swallowing

·    Cold drinks or food may feel more soothing

·    Drink plenty of fluids to stay hydrated. 6-8 glasses of liquid (water, juice) per day

·    Eat a diet high in fiber (bran, vegetables, fruit)

·    Pain medications may make you constipated. Use a stool softener such as Colace

     100mg 2-3 times a day as needed until bowels are regular again. If no bowel

     movement after 4 days you may take a laxative such as Dulcolax, MiraLAX or

     Magnesium Citrate. If using Magnesium Citrate only use ½ bottle. If no bowel

     movement after 6 hours take remaining ½ bottle of Magnesium Citrate. Call your

     physician if constipation persists.

 

Medications and Pain Control:

·    Resume your regular medications unless otherwise advised

·    May apply ice to neck for 20 minutes each hour as needed for pain and/or swelling

·    You will be provided with appropriate pain medications

·    Please follow the prescription instructions on the bottle

·    Do not take any other pain relievers other than those prescribed post operatively

·    DO NOT TAKE Ibuprofen, Aleve^®, Advil^®, Motrin^® or any other anti-inflammatory

     drugs for a minimum of 2 weeks post operatively. Consult surgeon before resuming 

·    If you take an aspirin for your heart, you may resume that as soon as you come home

     from the hospital

·    Do not drink alcohol while on pain medication

 

Returning to Work:

·    Your physician will instruct when you can return to work at your follow-up visit

 

Call your physician’s office at ANY time if you have problems such as:

·    Fever over 101.5 degrees that persists over 6 hours

·    A substantial increase in your neck pain uncontrolled with pain medication prescribed

·    Increased difficulty swallowing

·    Sudden weakness in your arms or legs

·    Redness or swelling of the incision

·    Separation of incision

·    If you develop a severe headache when you sit/stand up

·    Any loss of control of your bowel or bladder functions

·    If no bowel movement after 4 days, lack of flatulence, abdominal bloating, diarrhea,

     excessive belching, nausea, vomiting or no results with laxative

·    Persistent or increasing drainage from the incision

 

Go directly to the nearest ER or call 9-1-1 if you:

·    Become short of breath

·    Have chest pain

·    Cough up blood

·    Have unexplained anxiety with breathing

 

 

 

Follow-up Appointment:

·    Follow-up with your physician in 2-6 weeks. If your follow-up appointment has

     not already been made, please call for appointment

·    Follow-up with your Primary Care Physician if instructed