iv tylonal?
The surgeons that I work for part time use intravenous Tylenol in addition to a patient-controlled morphine pump for laparoscopic surgeries, but they don't use the Tylenol alone. Some people only self-administer a dose or two of the morphine, though, so for some people the IV Tylenol apparently does provide adequate pain control.
Personally, though I would be sure before surgery that your confirm with the surgeon that if they routinely provide ONLY the Tylenol, that there are standing orders for a "rescue" narcotic pain medication. There is nothing worse than being in pain and having to wait until the nurses can get authorization from the surgeon for a stronger medication!
I should add that the concern surrounding Tylenol alone is that the standard dose is 1g every 6 hours, but that reaches the "danger" threshold of 4g/day for acetaminophen causing liver damage... So it definitely isn't something you would want to do for more than a couple of days. Did you ask what kind of pain medication your surgeon prescribes once you leave the hospital?
Lora
14 years out; 190 pounds lost, 165 pound loss maintained
You don't drown by falling in the water. You drown by staying there.
