PRE-OP TESTING
Medical consultants are generally asked to assess preoperative risk in most patients who are to undergo surgery. The focus of discussion in this article applies to healthy people who are to undergo an elective surgical procedure. A general systems examination should identify obvious abnormalities:
- Cardiovascular system – heart murmur. With the exception of emergency surgery, patients should be hemodynamically stable and their vital signs normal before starting anesthesia
- Respiratory system – abnormal breath sounds
- Gastrointestinal system – abdominal masses, previous scars
- Musculoskeletal system – skeletal malformations such as kyphoscoliosis
- General – local skin infection
