Preoperative and postoperative care for thyroid cancer patients

How should patients with thyroid cancer be cared for before and after surgery? With the popularization of medical knowledge, people have begun to pay attention to the postoperative care of thyroid cancer, but they do not pay attention to the need for good nursing measures before surgery. In fact, good preoperative care can ensure the safety of the operation. So how should patients with thyroid cancer be cared for before and after surgery?

Nursing before and after thyroid cancer surgery

1. Preoperative care

1. Psychological care

Warmly welcome the patient and introduce the hospital environment. Inform the patient about thyroid tumors and surgery, explain the necessity of surgery and the significance of preoperative preparation, talk with the patient more to eliminate his worries and fears; understand his feelings and understanding of the disease and his thoughts on the proposed treatment plan.

2. Instruct the patient to practice surgical position (place a soft pillow on the shoulders, keep the head low and the neck hyperextended) to facilitate exposure of the surgical field during surgery.

3. Instruct patients to take deep breaths and learn how to cough effectively.

4. For patients who are overly nervous or insomniac, appropriate use of sedatives or sleeping pills should be given as directed by the doctor to put them in the best physical and mental state for surgery.

5. Adequate and complete preoperative preparation and care are the key to ensuring the smooth progress of the operation and preventing postoperative complications of thyroid surgery.

(1) Imaging examination: In addition to a comprehensive physical examination and necessary laboratory tests, patients with large thyroid tumors also need to undergo neck fluoroscopy or radiography to determine whether the trachea is compressed or displaced.

(2) Laryngoscopy: to determine the function of the vocal cords.

(3) Serum electrolyte test: measure the blood calcium and phosphorus levels to understand the functional status of the parathyroid gland.

2. Postoperative Care

1. Body position: After returning to the ward, the patient should lie flat, and after his blood pressure stabilizes or he wakes up from general anesthesia, he should lie in a high-slope position to facilitate breathing and drainage; instruct the patient to keep his head and neck in a comfortable position, and to use his hands to fix his neck when changing lying position, getting up, or coughing to reduce vibration and maintain comfort;

2. While paying attention to the patient's main complaint after surgery, closely observe their vital signs, breathing, pronunciation and swallowing to detect common complications after thyroid surgery as early as possible, notify the doctor in time and cooperate with rescue; routinely place a sterile tracheotomy bag next to the bed;

3. Diet: Patients who have undergone cervical plexus anesthesia can take a small amount of warm or cool liquid food starting from 6 hours after surgery. Avoid taking overheated liquid food to avoid inducing vasodilation at the surgical site and aggravating wound bleeding. Appropriately limit the intake of foods with high phosphorus content such as meat, milk crystals and eggs to avoid affecting calcium absorption.

4. For those who place rubber sheets or drainage tubes in the surgical field, keep the drainage unobstructed and regularly observe whether the drainage is effective;

5. Strengthen the monitoring of dynamic changes in blood calcium concentration; Treatment of convulsions: Immediately follow the doctor's orders to intravenously inject 10% calcium gluconate 10-20ml.