Coming clean: Your anesthesiologist needs to know about marijuana use before surgery

Given the increasing prevalence and legalization of marijuana, many patients have come to think that marijuana use is not worth mentioning to their physicians. After all, they reason, I would not necessarily tell my doctor that I had a glass of wine last night, so why should I disclose that I smoked marijuana yesterday? Unfortunately, this reasoning is flawed. Because marijuana has a variety of effects on the body and on anesthesia medicines, it is crucial that anyone undergoing a preoperative evaluation disclose their marijuana use. Don’t worry that your anesthesiologist is judging you. That’s not our job! Our job is to understand your health and body in order to provide you with the safest and most pain-free procedure. This information is part of your confidential medical record, and accurate information is crucial to helping doctors provide good care. Marijuana can affect the type and amount of anesthesia The way(s) you use marijuana (smoking, edibles, etc.), how often you use, and how much all can affect how your body responds to anesthesia. Since marijuana and anesthesia both affect the central nervous system, people who use marijuana regularly may need different amounts of anesthesia medicines. In order to know which medicines and how much to use, your doctor needs to know ahead of time how much and how often you use marijuana. Regular users of marijuana generally need larger doses of anesthesia medicines in order to achieve the same degree of sedation. If you donâ€...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Health care Marijuana Prevention Safety Surgery Source Type: blogs