This is not a substitute for direct care by YOUR doctor. Confirm with your doctor before doing any of the following.
These instructions are for patients undergoing: Right Hemicolectomy, Left Hemicolectomy, Partial Colectomy, Total Abdominal Colectomy, Low Anterior Resection, Abdominoperineal Resection, Proctopexy, Rectopexy, and other colon / rectal surgeries.
General instructions
- If you take a beta blocker, you can take that the day of surgery with a sip of water
- Do not forget your phone charger, your glasses, or anything that you may need for a day or two in the hospital
- If you take an unusual medication, it may not be stocked in the hospital pharmacy. You may need to bring this medication with you to the hospital. Please discuss it with your doctor.
- If you are on a blood thinner (or you are told to take aspirin by your doctor), this is typically stopped 1 to 7 days before surgery. PLEASE DISCUSS THIS WITH YOUR DOCTOR.
Diet the day before surgery
- A clear liquid is anything that you can see through
- For example: Jello, water, broth, popsicles, Italian ice, apple juice, Gatorade, etc.
- Please DO NOT DRINK: milk, tomato juice, cream soups, oatmeal, etc.
- You can add salt, pepper, or sugar to items
New Medications
- Flagyl (Metronidazole) 500 mg: take 1 tablet by mouth at 2 pm, 3 pm, and 10 pm on the day before surgery
- Neomycin Sulfate 500 mg: take 2 tablets at 2 pm, 3pm, and 10 pm the day before surgery
Bowel Preparation
- Stop medications that are for diarrhea (Imodium®, Kaopectate®) or that contain iron 7 days prior to your procedure.
- MiraLAX prep
- Starting by 4pm (at the latest) on the day before your procedure, you are going to consume an entire bottle of Miralax (238 gram or 8.3 oz) as slowly or as quickly as you would like as long as you have drank the entire bottle of MiraLAX at least 3!! hours before your procedure.
- Mix 2 capfuls with 8 ounces of liquid. Let the powder dissolve for about 10 minutes. This will substantially reduce any bad taste. Drink the liquid. Repeat this until the bottle of MiraLAX is gone. You can drink a glass as often as every 15 minutes.
- The goal is to have clear affluent (clear stool)
- You will also take 4 dulcolax tablets during the evening. These can cause cramping so stop this step if the cramps are painful.
- "Split Prep" option
- This options splits drinking the MiraLAX into half at night and half in the morning and has been shown to cleanse the bowel better.
- You still need to drink the entire bottle of MiraLAX by three hours before the procedure
- Two Day prep
- If you have a history of significant constipation or incomplete bowel preparation in the past, a two day prep may be a good option for you.
- This means you start a clear liquid only diet two days before your procedure.
- Typically the MiraLAX is drank slowly over the full two days, completing it on the morning of the procedure - at least 3!! hours before your procedure.
- Suprep
- The kit comes with two, 6 oz. bottles of medication and a 16 oz. drinking cup.
- Pour one, 6 fl oz. bottle of SUPREP liquid into the supplied drinking cup, add cool drinking water to the FILL line on the cup, and mix carefully.
- Between 3-6 PM the night before your procedure: drink the first diluted bottle as prepared above, followed by at least 2 more 16 oz. containers of water over the next hour.
- 6-8 hours before your procedure: Drink the second diluted bottle as prepared above, followed by at least 2 additional 16 oz. containers of water over the next hour.