Concerned about nausea, is it still an issue with an epidural?

[calamity]

I was relieved when my OS told me they would be doing an epidural for my BTKR. I've never had an epidural, all my prior surgeries have been under general anesthesia. The drugs they give for the nausea only work when I'm lying still. As soon as I'm moved, including moving the bed I'm in....I am so sick. Should I expect to still have this problem with an epidural?

I must say, this is my biggest concern, other than maybe what I'm going to do with my hair while I'm in the hospital!

 

[Jaycey]

calamity did he say epidural or spinal? In any case my experience with a spinal was magic compared to general. I have the same issues with nausea and it took me days to get over general. With my THR I had a spinal and was awake and alert immediately following the procedure. As for anti-nausea meds anyway as the pain killers sometimes contribute to nausea.

 

[calamity]

Thanks Jaycey, He did say epidural, and if for some reason they couldn't get an epidural they would do a femoral block.
I have always trouble with motion sickness, so I think that is why I'm sick when they move me. Last surgery I tried to talk the anesthesiologist to allow me to use a transdermal patch. He informed he found the iv drugs worked the best.... Yep, and by the time they had wheeled me to my room, I was nauseous. I really don't want to go through that again.

 

[Josephine]

If they do an epidural, don't let the nurses sit you up too quickly else you might - might - experience some nausea. Two pillows is more than enough. This won't be due to any drugs but with an epidural, the blood pressure is lowered and if you get sat up too much too quickly this can make you feel a little icky. It doesn't happen with a spinal.

 

[Phoenixx29]

Hi, I recently had BTKR with an epidural. I had no problem at all with nausea. As soon as I got out of recovery I was able to have a sandwich and a cup of tea.

I did have the blood pressure issues though that Josephine mentioned. I spent quite a while in recovery because I was shaking and they were waiting for the blood pressure to go up. The anaethesist had decided to leave the catheter in and topped the pain meds up the following morning, blod pressure promptly dropped - of course they expected that and I had someone take my BP every 5 min for 45 min, every hour for a while after that. I was not allowed to get up until the following day (second after surgery).

I was really scared beforehand as i had never had an operation before - it was nowhere near as bad as I had feared. As far as your hair is concerned - it will be the least of your worries . Most likely you will be too loopy on the meds to care.

 

[NightQuilter]

Hi Jane - I had an epidural with both of my knees and did not have any difficulty on waking up. I was a little sleepy after the second one, no doubt due to the blood pressure issue Josephine mentioned. That, no doubt, is also why I did not have the bilateral I was scheduled for - the blood pressure did not recover quickly enough after they finished the first knee, so he elected not to take a chance with going forward with the second knee that day. But then, you are quite a bit younger than I and my blood pressure tends to be low - I did fine with bilateral hips when I was 53.

 

[calamity]

Phoenixx99 and Lynn, Thank you, I appreciate hearing that both of you had no nausea and the heads up with the low blood pressure. Will be asking about that at my pre-anesthesia visit. I still have to see my family doc for approval for the bilateral. I take some medication for palpitations and urinary retention that lowers my blood pressure a bit. I really want to do it bilateral, and am hoping to stand my ground unless the doc has some good reasons that I shouldn't.

As far as your hair is concerned - it will be the least of your worries . Most likely you will be too loopy on the meds to care.

Just before the last surgery I had I was talking to my hairdresser saying I didn't know how I was going to control my hair in the hospital, and it was so stupid for me to even be stressing about it! Then as we were talking I realize that my hair was about the only thing that I had any control of. I'm not a worrier for the most part and don't dwell on things that are out of my control. So, once I educate myself about my surgery....I tend to think about those dumb little things that really don't matter before having surgery like my hair.

 

[Jesse for the Fight]

Like you I'm a puker! I puked after a general for my wisdom teeth. I puked after a spinal for my hip replacement and I'm pretty sure I'm going to puke after an epidural for my bilateral total knee replacements coming up this Monday, July 29. That being said, having talked to many people about my puking proclivity, I was told to tell the anesthetist because there's some magical- doctor tricks they can do during the operation that may help.
I'll keep you posted.

 

[Jesse for the Fight]

... And there is nothing wrong with being pragmatic about your hair. Especially if you are a puker, hee hee! In the summer weather hair gets greasy enough as it is. After surgery hair gets greasy aaaaand gnarled up in knots. After my hip replacement my hair was a rats nest from sleeping on my back, it made me feel even worse. I was sweaty, dirty and had unfortunately urinated on myself several times over my three day hospital stay. Having my hair brushed and washed was like a breath of fresh air! I have decided that for my BTKR I will bring a few hairclips that are gentle to lay on and an elastic for braiding. If your hair is short, cotton head bands hide greasy roots and will keep it off your face.... Just say'n.

 

[calamity]

Hi Jesse for the Fight . It's nice to hear from a "fellow puker" I have been reading your threads, so young and going through so much, your my oldest daughters age. My heart goes out to you. Please know I will be keeping you in my prayers. Praying for a successful surgery, NO nausea, minimal pain, and speed in healing and good hair days for you.

May God bless you, strengthen you and comfort you in the days ahead. I'll be watching the recovery threads for updates as you're able to post. Keep up the fight!!!

All my best,
Jane

 

[Josephine]

I was told to tell the anesthetist because there's some magical- doctor tricks they can do during the operation that may help.

ALWAYS tell the anaesthetist about anything like this. There are plenty of anti-emetics they can use and other techniques. But they can only use them if they know!

 

[denpucc]

What is the difference between an epidural and a spinal? I'm told i will be having a spinal with a nerve block.

Thx!
Denise

 

[catlady]

Hi Jane -
I had bilateral TKR on July 18 - so I'm a little more than a month ahead of you. Like you, nausea was one of my biggest concerns - I've always gotten sick after general anesthesia, as well as with any pain meds I've tried to take. I had an epidural and it worked great as far as the nausea. It did wear of with just spotty numbness in the recovery room, so I had to take pain meds sooner than expected (if you're interested, I just started my post op thread which goes into detail of that). I did get sick from the pain meds at first, but they gave me stuff in my IV that eventually got everything under control. My body has now adjusted and I can take the pain meds (I'm on Narco) with few problems. So don't worry too much about that - the nurses will be able to figure out what works best for you rather quickly and you'll be good by the time you go home.

On a lighter note, I too was worried about my hair : ) .... From your picture, I think we have the opposite problem - I have super fine, straight hair that plasters itself against my scalp if I don't curl it... Trust me - it will cease to be a worry after you surgery ; ) ....
One thing that I did keep close by and helped a lot was my toothbrush and toothpaste. I used the "spit" container to wash it off and rinse my mouth and felt like a new person each time. This sort of makes you be thankful for the little things!!

If you have any questions, I'm here and more than happy to share my experiences!

 

[Jamie]

What is the difference between an epidural and a spinal? I'm told i will be having a spinal with a nerve block.

Thx!
Denise

Here is an article from our BoneSmart Library that gives you the answers you're looking for.

 

[calamity]

Thank you catlady , I'm so glad to hear that you did better with the epidural than general anestesia. I realize everyone reacts and recovers differently, but this site sure helps to prepare us for what will most likely happen. I really don't like surprises, so do much better when I'm informed. It seems, the more accomplished the surgeon is, the less likely he is to tell you the little things (that can really matter in the long run).

On a lighter note, I too was worried about my hair : ) .... From your picture, I think we have the opposite problem - I have super fine, straight hair that plasters itself against my scalp if I don't curl it... Trust me - it will cease to be a worry after you surgery ; ) .... One thing that I did keep close by and helped a lot was my toothbrush and toothpaste. I used the "spit" container to wash it off and rinse my mouth and felt like a new person each time. This sort of makes you be thankful for the little things!!

My hair just goes frizzy if I don't wet it down each day. I look like a wild woman! (A bit on the witchy side, probably will match my disposition!) But as you say, that will be the least of my concerns after surgery. Thanks for the reminder about the toothbrush, will definitely have mine handy! One surgery I had the surgeon actually ordered a mouthwash to be used twice a day for all his patients. So the nurses came and gave it to me, along with the water to rinse and something to spit in. (I was bed ridden at the time) It tasted kind of nasty, but sure felt better using it.

Good luck with your recovery, I will be following your progress. Thanks so much for the encouragement.

Jane

 

[maddoxsmama]

Hi Calamity! I understand what you are talking about when you talk about nausea after surgery. I always get so sick and the doctor promised this time I would not. I had the femoral nerve block (which worked great) but I was still very sick afterwards as usual. They put med in my IV, put the patch behind my ear and immediately started me on anti-nausea med right after surgery and I was still sick for a couple days. Hope you are luckier than I was. But once this was behind me, my recovery was great and there were no more bumps in the road. Guess some of us are just destined to be sick regardless of what they do to prevent it.

 

[Lovestoread]

General anesthesia makes me nauseous, too. I had an epidural with sedation for my TKR and had no problems with feeling sick. They also put a scopolamine patch behind my ear before surgery.

 

[calamity]

Thanks maddoxsmama I'm so sorry that nothing helped with the nausea, but am glad the rest of your recovery went well. I do hope I have a better experience as far as the nausea, but as you said, it's a short time and will get better. My pre-anesthesia appointment is next week, I will definitely talk to them about it. After that....it will be what it will be. I'm not going to stress about it.

 

[calamity]

Lovestoread It's good to hear that you had a good experience with the epidural with no nausea. I hope it works well for me too.

Good luck tomorrow with your surgery. Will keep you in my prayers that all will go well.

 

[referee54]

'

I was told to tell the anesthetist because there's some magical- doctor tricks they can do during the operation that may help.

ALWAYS tell the anaesthetist about anything like this. There are plenty of anti-emetics they can use and other techniques. But they can only use them if they know!

I became nausous after a knee surgery years ago---but the second one---and for my BTKR, too---the anesthesiologist knew ahead of time and gave me great meds---no nausea at all. I also had a spinal with "happy juice and it was the best recovery that IO had after a surgery!

I am sure that your worries will be taken care of!