Can you still have surgery if you are getting over the flu?

Answer 1

Depends on how height it is - if it's above 99, probably not. Your vitals need to be within a certain range and anything out of the ordinary, if not explained by medicine or something else, will usually result in a rescheduling. If you're running a fever, it could mean an infection, virus, etc., and surgery will weaken you much further, possibly putting your life in danger depending on the cause of the elevated temperature. No good medical facility will do that knowingly.

Answer 2

It depends on the type of surgery in most cases. The doctors will decide case by case, so talk to yours as soon as you think you have an infectious disease so they can determine if the surgery should be delayed. If you have fever or significant coughing and lung congestion, they will most likely reschedule any major surgery, or minor procedures that require general anesthesia.

Answer 3

You will need to contact the office of the surgeon and speak to the office nurse to inform them of your illness and to ask that question. It will depend on many factors that only your surgeon can evaluate properly, such as the type of surgery, the type of anesthesia planned, your state of health in general and if you have underlying disorders that the flu may exacerbate, the type of flu, how long you have had the problem and the specific symptoms you had with the diarrhea, as well as, what your current symptoms are, if any.

Since you added the question to the category of diarrhea, I assume you mean the "stomach flu" (viral gastroenteritis) and not true influenza, the respiratory disease. If all symptoms were related to the GI tract and not the respiratory tract (cough, congestion, etc), then it will also be important that your hydration status is assessed, since diarrhea is a common cause of dehydration.

Surgery will most likely be postponed if you are still having symptoms of diarrhea, fever, are still contagious, or are dehydrated; or, at the least, you may need to have different or additional specific lab studies done before the surgery. Don't wait to contact the surgeon's office and perhaps the procedure will not need to be rescheduled if you get immediate evaluation and treatment, if needed.

If you could still be contagious, you could put other frail patients, medical staff and the public at risk if you expose them to your virus. Your surgeon will determine if it is okay for you to be in a public place.

Answer 4

It is ok to have surgery while running a fever as long as your surgeon is aware of the situation and clears it. The fever may be part of the reason you are having surgery.