Thursday, July 12, 2007

Achilles Tendon Surgery: Hospital vs Outpatient Center

Since this was my first surgery involving general anesthesia, I was a bit concerned. I was also somewhat concerned about the fact that the operation would take place in an outpatient center instead of a regular hospital.

In reality, outpatient centers are as well equipped as hospitals to perform surgery, but at that point I was not really familiar with them. So I did what I always do when I need to know more about something: I went online and started doing research.

I found a great website that explains at length everything you need to know about outpatient surgery. Here is the link: Outpatient Surgery Article. By reading it, I learned that 60% of the surgeries performed in the US are now outpatient, and that the percentage will likely increase to 75% over the next decade.

The article also explains, step by step, every aspect of the outpatient surgery procedure. This was great, because when I actually went to have my surgery I knew exactly what to expect. That took a lot of the anxiety away and made for a more pleasant experience.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

How long did your surgery take?

Anonymous said...

Ruptured my left AT on Oct 18th -- had surgery on the 21st. The treatment plan was to put me out -- repair the rutpure and have me stay the night for observation. The surgeon sure enough knocked me out -- I slept like a kitten for 2.5 hours and woke up pain-free. In fact, I felt so good that I went home a couple of hours later. I've been in and out of the cast and I have about a week left in my Walking-boot. Physical therapy will begin soon after.

yshouldi said...

Iam having surgery on June 26 trying to perpare myself for it. Having my achilles repair and a heel spur remove at the same time. My dr. said I will be in a case two to three weeks how long will is PT.