If
you are scheduled for heart surgery, it is important to
be honest with your health care providers about your
alcohol use. Your recovery from heart surgery may not
proceed as planned if your health care providers are not
aware of your history of alcohol use. Tell your health
care provider how many drinks you have per day (or per
week).
Excessive alcohol use, defined as drinking more
than three drinks per day, can affect the
outcome of your heart surgery. Binge drinking (consuming
large amounts of alcohol infrequently, such as on
weekends) can also affect the outcome of your surgery.
How Does Alcohol Affect My Heart Surgery?
If you drink more than three drinks a day, you could
have a complication, called alcohol withdrawal, after
heart surgery. Alcohol withdrawal is a
set of symptoms that people have when they suddenly stop
drinking, after using alcohol for a long period of time.
During withdrawal, a person’s central nervous system
“overreacts” and causes symptoms such as mild shakiness,
sweating, hallucinations and other more serious side
effects.
Untreated alcohol withdrawal can cause potentially
life-threatening complications after heart surgery,
including tremors, seizures, hallucinations, delirium
tremens, and even death. Untreated alcohol withdrawal
often leads to a longer stay in the intensive care unit
(ICU) hospital stay following heart surgery. Chronic
heavy drinking also can interfere with several organ
systems and biochemical controls in the body, causing
serious, even life-threatening complications.
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By definition, one drink equals
12 ounces of beer or wine cooler, 5 ounces of wine or 1.5 ounces of 80-proof liquor. |
Alcohol Withdrawal Treatment Before Heart Surgery
Health care
providers can offer alcohol withdrawal treatment prior to heart
surgery to provide these outcomes:
• Decreased incidence of post-operative seizures and delirium
tremors
• Decreased use of restraining devices
• Decreased incidence of patient falls
• Reduced use of potent sedative medications
• Decreased length of stay in the hospital following heart
surgery
• Less time on the mechanical ventilator following heart surgery
• Lower incidence of organ failure and biochemical
complications
How Do I Know if I am at Risk for
Alcohol Withdrawal After Heart Surgery?
During your pre-surgical visit, you will be asked to answer a
series of questions to assess your risk of alcohol withdrawal
and other alcohol problems after heart surgery. Please respond
to the questions as honestly as possible, because they
can influence the success of your heart surgery.
Remember, any information provided is held in strict confidence.
We are here to help you prepare and recover from your heart
surgery as quickly and safely as possible.
If you have questions or concerns about your alcohol use, please
talk to your health care team.