Blood Work Necessary Before Rhinoplasty?

Hello,
Every physician has their own protocol. With my patients, I require a complete physical and blood work prior to surgery so that I am aware of any medical issues one may have. Hope this helps answer your question. Thank you and best of luck.
Dr. Nassif

Several studies, including a large study at Mayo Clinic in 1997, show no benefit to pre-operative lab testing for otherwise healthy adults (except for a pre-op pregnancy test, of course, in females of child-bearing age). Although some surgeons get blood work, there is no scientific basis behind it.
Quoting from the Mayo study:
"We conclude that patients who have been assessed by history and physical examination and determined to have no preoperative indication for laboratory tests can safely undergo anesthesia and operation with tests obtained only as indicated intraoperatively and post-operatively. Current anesthetic and medical practices rapidly identify perioperative indications for laboratory evaluation as they arise."
I only advocate testing where there are known pre-op conditions where the test results will determine how to manage the patient intra-op and post-op. These are mostly in reconstructive patients. For cosmetic patients, we set the bar pretty high on who's healthy enough to even be considered for surgery.
All the best,
--DCP

If you are young and healthy, that is less than 40, no blood work is required by the American Society of Anesthesia for people having elective outpatient surgery. However, if you have any history of bleeding problems or anemia (low blood count) then it would be appropriate to obtain preoperative blood studies. We do require women of child bearing age to have a urine pregnancy test prior to undergoing any elective surgery or if you are over 40 a preoperative EKG. Obviously, if you have any medical problems that would require additional blood testing. I hope this information helps.

Studies have shown that standard blood tests aren't really necessary for a man under 35 as long as you are healthy and don't have any underlying medical conditions. This is a standard set by the national Anesthesia society. A good screening medical history should be sufficient to discover any major conditions that would require blood tests and/or a clearance from your primary care physician.
For women, the standard is to get two blood tests. The first is an HCG; this is a blood test to make sure you aren't pregnant. Elective surgery on a pregnant woman should not be done. Also, women may be prone to anemia so a red blood cell count is also requested at the same time.

Hi Heather,
Accredited operating rooms and anesthesiologists require at least minimal lab work a few days before surgery. Although 99.9% of the time there is no problem, it's that one case that can cause a disaster. It is a good idea to have your lab work checked before your surgery.
Good luck and be well.
Dr. P