Surgery Frequently Asked Questions
Where is the surgical center?
The Wikstrom Surgical Center is located on the Newton Wellesley Hospital campus. You should take the East Entrance from Rt. 16 and follow signs to Wikstrom Surgical Center. Parking is available in the main garage. The Wikstrom Surgical Center is located behind the main parking garage. Patients being dropped off can follow signs to the surgical center, which has its' own entrance.
Where are pretest appointments?
Pretest appointments, if they are not phone screens, are at the Wikstrom Surgical Center, not your doctor's office.
Can I eat on the day of my surgery?
You may NOT eat or drink most drinks after midnight the night before your surgery unless otherwise specified by your doctor. If your surgery is late in the day, you may drink CLEAR liquids such as water or apple juice up to 4 hours prior to your arrival. You may take your morning medicines with a very small sip of water if necessary. If you take any medicine for diabetes, please call the office for specific questions regarding those medications.
What medications do I need to stop before my surgery?
Please ask your doctor about specific medications, but anti-inflammatories such as ibuprofen, Motrin, Aleve and aspirin and Plavix should be stopped 10 days prior to your surgery. Tylenol (acetaminophen) is safe to continue.
If you take Coumadin or other blood thinners, please call the office. This will have to be stopped an appropriate amount of time prior to surgery and special blood tests done the day of surgery.
For ALL medications and especially if you take an MAO inhibitor, please make sure that this information is noted on your preoperative evaluation.
If you are unsure about stopping your medication, please call the office.
What should I do if I need to cancel my surgery or think it is no longer needed?
If you know you need to cancel surgery, please call as soon as possible so it can be rescheduled. If you think your surgery in no longer needed, please speak with the doctor or physician assistant prior to canceling.
Do I need to remove fake nails or nail polish?
If you are having surgery on a finger, that finger's acrylic nail MUST be removed prior to surgery. You may leave on nail polish for all surgeries.
How long will my recovery be?
Recovery time varies with the surgery and from patient to patient. Please call the office for more specific answers regarding your own recovery time.
What do I do in case of emergency after my surgery? How do I reach someone?
There is a doctor on call 24 hours a day. If you feel you have an emergent problem after your surgery, please call the office and the answering service will have the doctor on call paged. Please keep in mind this is for emergencies only. For a real emergency related or unrelated to your surgery, if you can't reach the doctor in a reasonable time, please go to the closest emergency room. For all other non emergent problems, please call the office and leave a message which will be returned the following morning.
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