The operation is a group of actions that lead to an effect of its own, examples of which are surgical operations, which are surgical intervention in one of the parts of the body using some specialized surgical tools and are used by the specialist surgeon with the aim of preventing the feeling of pain, alleviating it, reducing the symptoms resulting from it, or perhaps to detect the presence of a disease, such as operations specialized in taking a biopsy. Surgical operations have witnessed widespread development at the present time, as many surgical operations can be performed with a laser without the need for surgical scissors. There are also some surgical operations that were performed with a deep incision, so that at the time

What is surgical care? 

It is worth noting that all different types of surgical operations are considered invasive procedures and require surgical care. It is also worth noting that circumcision, during which tissue is not penetrated using non-invasive surgery, falls under the description of radiosurgery, which was previously used in treating tumors with radiation, which is represented in some operations such as corneal laser ablation and the like.

Surgery in general is one of the medical techniques used to treat some injured tissues inside the body through medical intervention, which is by making a small incision in the body tissues to sew up the wound of previous injuries.

There are also some other procedures that are not considered surgical procedures, such as endoscopy, catheterization, and the like, but may be considered one of the surgical procedures if all surgical care preparations are available, such as anesthesia, a sterile environment, suturing, stapling, and surgical tools.

Types of major surgeries

Major surgeries or major surgery are defined as operations in which one of the main aspects of the body is opened, which is the skull, abdomen, or chest.

Opening the abdomen is known as a laparotomy, opening the chest as a thoracotomy, and opening the skull as a craniotomy.

Major surgical operations add a very large burden on all vital organs and functions of the body, as these operations are used using general anesthesia inside hospital operating rooms and by a team of specialized anesthesiologists.

It is usual for the patient to remain after the end of major surgical care for a period of no less than a full night. These operations can also be performed safely and securely within some large clinics, whether they are affiliated with a large hospital or a mobile center for ambulatory surgery.

Doctors must pay close attention before deciding to perform major surgical care in an outpatient clinic and take into consideration some necessary factors such as the patient’s general health, the complexity of surgical care, the risk of any sudden complications, and the availability of a hospital close to the clinic due to the possibility of its need in emergency cases.

​Post-surgical wound care

There is a fixed set of steps for changing wounds and surgical care after the end of operations, so the patient must know them well in order to ensure rapid recovery by healing wounds and avoiding infection. These steps are as follows:

Wash hands properly 

The step of washing hands before changing the wound after surgical care is one of the important steps that cannot be dispensed with or overlooked, as it is a primary source of infection and contamination of the wound. Here are the steps for washing hands correctly so that the patient can ensure good cleanliness as follows:

• Getting rid of all jewelry and jewelry that the patient wears on his hands.
• Place hands under running water faucet.
• Hands must be washed using a strong cleanser consisting of some substances, including alcohol or soap, for a period ranging between 15 to 30 seconds.
• Wash hands well with detergent.
• Dry hands with clean tissues or a towel.

Remove the old bandage

The treating physician is responsible for determining the appropriate times for changing and removing the bandages. This process begins with removing the old bandage by following the following steps:

• You must ensure that all the tools the patient needs during the dressing change are present and placed in a clean place.
• Wear clean gloves.
• The adhesive tape around the old bandage is gently removed so as not to cause pain.
• Gently pick up the old bandage over the wound with both hands.
• If you cannot remove the bandage easily and it sticks to the wound, you can wet it with water.
• Discard the old bandage.
• Wash your hands well after completing this step.

Cleaning and dressing the wound

The type of wound varies between a stitched wound that is not infected and an open wound that is constantly infected and exposed to infection. Here is how to clean both of them as follows:

• Cleaning the wound after suturing and preventing infection: The wound is cleaned well using saline solution or sterile water to remove any residue on the wound. The wound must then be gently dried using sterile gauze, then a sterile bandage is placed on the wound and on the edges as well. Finally, the new bandage is fixed using adhesive tape.
• Cleaning an infected open wound: This wound can be cleaned using a large number of different antiseptics such as povidone, saline solution, or sterile water, and finally the antiseptic solution is added after that.
• The wound is cleaned again using sterile Vaseline to remove all decomposed tissue, thus cleaning the wound completely.
• The sterile bandage is then added to the edges and to the wound, then adhered to with custom adhesive tape.
• After completing the wound change process, you must dispose of all sharp tools and throw them in the waste, sterilize the tools that were used for cleaning, and also wash your hands using alcohol.

Important steps to ensure a quick recovery after the operation

It must be known first that there is no difference between a large or small wound, and both of them have the same fixed rules that must be followed in surgical care to ensure rapid recovery. Here are the post-operative care steps to ensure rapid recovery as follows:

Follow your doctor's instructions

The instructions that the doctor gives to the patient vary depending on the medical condition from one person to another. These instructions vary and vary between:

• How to care for a wound.
• Painkillers prescribed by the doctor to relieve the pain of the wound during its recovery period.
• Obtain appropriate appointments for taking therapeutic medications, which include antibiotics and the like.
• Identify all the complications that may affect the patient after the operation and the condition to which a doctor must be consulted.
• How to handle tubers properly.
• Do not carry heavy objects.
• Obtaining the first appointment in which the patient can shower. The appointment varies depending on the condition of the wound.

Regular appointment with the doctor 

During follow-up with the doctor during the patient’s specific visits, the necessary steps are taken by the doctor to check on the condition of the wound for surgical care, by following the following:

• The wound is examined so that the doctor makes sure that the patient does not have any infection.
• Do some blood tests.
• Sometimes the patient needs to adjust the medications he is taking or adjust the daily dose.

Preventing infection 

The best way to prevent infection is to avoid it completely. This is done by following some important tips for surgical care, such as washing hands well before touching the wound area, paying close attention to all infection control rules and their quality standards, and being aware of the early signs of wound infection.

Eat healthy 

Eating healthy food is one of the most important elements that lead to rapid recovery and accelerated healing through wound healing after surgical operations. The type of food you need also varies according to your health condition and the type of surgical care you underwent, and this is determined by the specialist doctor.

Beware of coughing or vice versa

Coughing plays a fundamental and important role after the end of surgical care in cleaning the lungs and ridding them of accumulated mucus, which causes pneumonia, which is one of the most serious complications that afflict patients after surgical operations, especially if the patient suffers from one of the following factors:

• If the patient is a smoker.
• If the patient suffers from severe deficiency of albumin in the blood.
• If he is old.
• If the patient has chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

The importance of caring for the wound after surgery

The stage of surgical care after the end of the surgical operation and discharge from the hospital is extremely important to achieve complete recovery at home during the treatment journey to reach the full recovery stage. The patient has a great responsibility, which is to take good care of the wound to ensure that it heals completely, which must be learned with the right steps. Here are the most important of those steps:

• Consult your doctor first before using any type of antiseptic to disinfect wounds while caring for them.
• Care must be taken to change the wound dressings continuously and regularly to achieve the best results, according to the doctor’s instructions.
• The wound must be covered well after cleaning it to ensure that no fluids get into it and to get rid of the fluids inside it.
• Avoid bathing for a specific period determined by the treating physician or going to the swimming pool, which may lead to infection of the wound area.
• You must completely refrain from bathing for a minimum of two days after leaving the operation, according to doctors’ recommendations.
• Care must be taken not to handle animals at all during the recovery period so that the wound does not become infected from their dander.
• No itching or scratching in the wound area.
• Do not remove the crusts that form on or around the wound, which accelerates its healing, do not drain the stitches, and do not contract any infection.

Movement

Movement after surgery, such as walking, is considered one of the necessary things within the stages of surgical care because it has many benefits within surgical care in addition to protecting it from various damages that the patient may be exposed to. Some of the benefits of walking are increasing blood flow throughout the body and accelerating wound healing, improving the function of the digestive, respiratory, reproductive and urinary systems, increasing appetite while raising the mood, enhancing good oxygen access to all parts of the body, which maintains lung function, strengthening the body’s muscles and restoring their flexibility and the flexibility of the joints.

The harm that may befall the patient as a result of lack of movement is the development of bed sores, urinary incontinence and urinary tract infections, deep vein thrombosis, constipation and pneumonia, and osteoporosis.

الأسئلة الشائعة:

What are the types of surgical sutures?

Surgical sutures greatly help in healing and strengthening the wound, reducing the risk of infection and bleeding, and giving the wound a decent appearance within surgical care. The types of surgical sutures vary according to the type of thread used, which can be divided into two parts, namely:

• Absorbable sutures: Absorbable sutures consist of some substances that the body can digest through tissue enzymes, so they can be placed forever and there is no need to remove them after the wound has healed. They include many types such as polydioxanone, polyglycolic acid, polyglycolide or co-caprolactone, and chromic surgical suture.
• Non-absorbable threads: These types of threads are formed in a way that does not allow the skin to absorb them, so the doctor needs to remove them himself immediately after the wound heals. If these threads are used inside the human body, the threads can be left and the tissues retain them, as these threads are used inside tissues that are slow to heal. Examples of these threads are nylon, silk, and polypropylene.

What are the stages of sewing?

Suturing wounds goes through several different stages, starting with the doctor examining the patient’s wound and asking him some important questions about the wound to determine whether it is necessary or not for suturing to begin the suturing process, which goes through several stages, which are as follows:

• Cleaning the wound: The doctor cleans the wound well using sterile materials and removes the hair around the wound area to avoid infection from the hair. This step is considered for surgical care.
• Anesthesia of the wound area: The doctor checks whether the wound needs local anesthesia or not, and undertakes the task of anesthesia when needed, using the appropriate anesthetic.
• Protecting the wound from contamination: The doctor uses some types of antibacterial fluids or uses a piece of sterile cloth that is placed around the wound to protect it from contamination during the suturing process.
• X-rays: If the wound was caused by exposure to pieces of glass, for example, it may require X-ray intervention to ensure that there are no remaining pieces of glass inside the body before suturing the wounds.
• Starting the suturing process: The sewing needle is extracted from its packaging and held on the flat side using the special needle holder. On the other hand, the skin of the right side of the wound is exposed using tissue forceps. The needle is placed in the exposed skin, starting from the outside to the inside, making sure that the needle exits from the inner side of the skin.
• Completing the suturing: The process we mentioned is repeated on the left side as well, but in it the needle is moved from the inside to the outside, and with repeated stitches, the two ends of the skin can be pulled together and the thread is used to make a knot with which the wound is closed. Finally, the end of the thread is cut with clean scissors.
• Covering the wound: The sutured wound is covered with antibiotics that are in the form of an ointment, and then sterile bandages are applied.

After learning all the details of post-operative surgical care, it is considered Surgery Center at Al Mousa Hospital One of the best surgery centers. The hospital also contains the most skilled and best doctors in the Kingdom. You can benefit from the integrated care they provide after the operation is completed.

المصادر والمراجع:

American College of Surgeons (ACS)

JAMA Surgery

Annals of Surgery