GENERAL

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• Exercise/diet: exercising regularly and eating a healthy diet will help your postop recovery and promote overall good health.

• Constipation: defined as not having regular bowel movements (example: one large bowel movement per day is expected); very common after surgery.

• Smoking: any form of inhaled drug (like cigarettes, marijuana, vaping, including but not limited to nicotine free smoking) may lead to an increased risk of complications; failure to comply with avoiding smoking may lead to cancellation and rescheduling of your procedure.

• Assistance: it is helpful to have someone with you during your recovery.

• Showering: Shower the night before and the morning of surgery with an antibacterial soap such as Hibiclens®, Dial® or Lever 2000®. Take special care to cleanse your penis and genitals. Wash your hair the night before surgery. Do not apply deodorant, powder or lotion.

• Possible interventions: dilation, steroid injection, removal of stone/granulation tissue or other foreign body, catheter placement, SPT insertion, and rarely other necessary procedures unique to certain clinical conditions.

 

SUPPLIES

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• Underwear: in general, slightly loose boxer briefs work well

• Ointments: in general, aquaphor is helpful for where the catheter contacts the skin to make it more comfortable

• Hibiclens: it is important to reduce the amount of bacteria on your skin prior to surgery.

  • Shower with Hibiclens 4% (aka chlorhexidine gluconate) starting 1-3 days prior to surgery. Avoid the head and face.

  • If allergic, use Dial or lever soap.

• Constipation prevention: begin regular use once you leave the hospital

  • Miralax powder tends to work best out of all the over-the-counter constipation meds. Use as directed to start; on occasion you will be asked to use it at an off- label dosage of 2-3 x per day to help with constipation.

• Medications:

  • Nausea meds: not required; may be ordered if requested or desired.

  • Pain meds: most patients report good pain control with tylenol with or without ibuprofen.

 

Please note that this is not a complete list and is generalized for the average patient. We recognize that each patient will have individualized needs and therefore will require specific items not present on this list.

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RISKS

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Risks of surgery in general include bleeding, infection, anesthesia complication, pain, transfusion, blood-borne disease, sepsis (severe infection), medication reactions, positioning injuries including numbness or weakness of an extremity, heart attack, stroke, blood clots in legs or lungs, pneumonia, rhabdomyolysis, nausea, ileus, atelectasis, death.

 

Risks of our surgery in particular includes infection, need for further treatment(s), need for life-long surveillance, incontinence, hematuria (blood in the urine), bladder spasms, post void leakage, damage to surrounding organs (blood vessels, nerves, muscles) necessitating immediate or delayed repair, abscess, fistula and/or stricture formation, injury to the urethra, prolonged need for drain or urinary catheter, unsatisfactory aesthetics or function, and other risks that are not listed but can uncommonly occur.