medications and surgery

[stellatj]

I have to have my gallbladder removed
i take several medicines
aspirin,atenolol,k-dur,niaspan er,and pravachol
the surgeon said i will be ok but everything i read says i should stop my aspirin he says i dont have too. is that really safe i am so scared i am a 44 yr old female
do you think anything needs to be stopped? i offered the surgeon my heart doctors phone number but he said he didnt need it.

[stellatj]

thanks everyone i am so scared but if it ends this pain it will be worth it.

[Erik36]

You should be fine having your Gallbladder removed laparoscopically while on aspirin. There is minimal bleeding associated with the procedure. Your peace of mind is important here also. Like the CCF Cardio said, talk to your cardiologist. Get a second opinion with another surgeon if you don't feel comfortable.


Erik

[whalersailor]

I have been on coumadin therapy for 12 years. I have to have my blood tested monthly or more often to determine how thin the blood is because of the coumadin.  I just recently learned that this testing is not done on those on aspirin therapy because the aspirin does not thin the blood enough to be measured by the standard testing.

[Cleveland Clinic]

timok,

Thanks for the post.

Im sorry but it impossible to tell you advice about starting and stopping specific medications. We do generally defer to the surgeons comfort level while operating on antiplatelet agents like aspirin or plavix. The risk of continuing them lies mostly with surgical bleedin risk which your surgeon is best to answer. If you are particualrly worried, you should discuss it with your cardiologist.

good luck