Question:
Has anyone taken ibuprofen less than 4 weeks before surgery?

I received my pre-op surgery guidelines this weekend and it said for me not to take ibuprofen atleast 4 weeks before surgery. I have taken ibuprofen prior to me getting this information on 6-21-02 and my surgery is on 7-10-02. Has this happened to anyone else? Will it keep me from having my surgery on 7-21-02?    — Shiwanda H. (posted on June 24, 2002)

June 25, 2002
Shiwanda, You should be fine. I had ibuprofen up to two weeks before a hysterectomy and was ok. I would clear it with your surgeons office just to be sure, but you should be ok. Tami
   — Tami D.

June 25, 2002
Hello! I'm pre-op/pending. I asked my husband, and he tells me that ibuprofen can cause blood clots in surgery. You should be honest with your surgeon. It shouldn't affect the surgery because my husband says all you'd need is a vitamin K shot. My husband knows alot about this stuff, so I hope this is true and helps. I thought I'd pass it along.... I sure hope it doesn't delay your surgery! Surely it wouldn't!!! Good Luck!
   — kristy713

June 25, 2002
I disagree with the previous poster. Ibuprofen is a blood thinning agent, similar to aspirin in that regard. Vitamin K is critical to enabling your body to clot naturally. Typically, they don't want you taking ibuprofen several days before surgery because it could cause you to bleed more profusely (lose more blood). The half-life of ibuprofen (the speed with which it is eliminated from your body) is relatively small. 4 weeks out should NOT be any problem what so ever, but clear everything ahead of time. Do not jeopardize your health by omitting details based on what you read on this site, and don't wait until the "day of" to spring new information on them. Good luck. Post back when you get an answer from your doctor.
   — Karen F.