Headache is common after gastric sleeve surgery.
Many people who have undergone bariatric surgery, such as gastric sleeve, may experience headaches briefly.
But is this headache severe?
Is it a sign of a particular problem?
What can be done to fix it? And what should not be done at all?
You will read all these and many more in this article, so stay tuned.
Introduction:
Headaches are common after gastric sleeve surgery.
This pain is throbbing, painful, and associated with pressure. This pain can be mild or severe and debilitating.
A headache occurs when the pressure on your nerves increases.
In response to this increased pressure, the body sends a pain signal to the brain, which can be a harrowing experience.
If you experience a headache after gastric sleeve surgery, it can have various causes. But there are solutions to relieve these pains.
The medical team of Dr. Farbad Emami Yeganeh intends to discuss in this article why some people get headaches after gastric sleeve surgery.
It will also be mentioned to introduce the medicines the patients are allowed to use and the solutions to control and solve these headaches.
Causes of headache after gastric sleeve operation:
Headache after gastric sleeve surgery and other surgeries can have various causes. It doesn’t matter if you have a minor or major surgery!
In any case, you may experience headaches for various reasons.
The following will discuss the most critical causes of headaches after bariatric surgery, including gastric sleeves.
Effects of anesthetic drugs:
Anesthesia can be one of the causes of headaches after gastric sleeve surgery.
Anesthesia is a simple method to control pain during surgery, which is done using anesthetic drugs.
In general anesthesia, the patient falls asleep and loses consciousness.
Regional anesthesia is performed by injecting anesthetics and narcotics and numbing a large body area.
Local anesthesia involves injecting anesthetic into a small body part to control pain.
Most patients get headaches after receiving any of these anesthetics.
These headaches are temporary and are treated when the anesthesia symptoms disappear.
These pains will usually last from one to several days after the surgery.
History of migraine headaches:
The most important thing about the complication of headaches after gastric sleeve surgery is whether or not the patient had a headache before the surgery.
If the patient has suffered from cluster headaches and migraines before the gastric sleeve surgery, he will also suffer from headaches after the operation because anesthetic drugs can aggravate migraine headaches.
In these cases, the treatment before surgery should be continued under the surgeon’s supervision to relieve the patient’s headache.
But some other patients with no previous history experience headache complications after gastric sleeve surgery.
The causes of headaches in these patients can be different.
The following will discuss the most important cause of headaches after gastric sleeve surgery.
Dehydration and dehydration of the patient’s body:
Dehydration is one of the most common causes of headaches after gastric sleeve surgery.
Therefore, dehydration can be introduced as the first and most important cause.
Drinking enough fluids in the first week after gastric sleeve surgery is crucial.
If you don’t drink enough fluids, you will eventually experience dehydration and headaches.
Therefore, you should ensure your body stays hydrated after gastric sleeve surgery. It is also necessary to look for signs of dehydration in your body early after gastric sleeve surgery.
After the gastric sleeve surgery, in the first week of the diet should drink enough liquids.
Symptoms of dehydration after gastric sleeve surgery:
As mentioned, dehydration and lack of fluid intake are the most important causes of headache complications after gastric sleeve surgery.
You likely have this condition if you feel extremely dry in your mouth.
Other symptoms of dehydration include a decrease in the amount of urine during the day.
If the number of times you urinate is less than four times a day and the color of your urine is dark, your body is most likely dehydrated.
Solutions to relieve headaches after gastric sleeve operation:
The solutions that are recommended to relieve headaches after gastric sleeve surgery depend on the leading cause of these headaches.
Therefore, treating patients who have headaches due to dehydration is completely different from patients who experience headaches due to exacerbating migraine pains.
Of course, some may experience dizziness after gastric sleeve surgery.
Of course, these headaches can be due to other reasons such as blood pressure fluctuations, stress and anxiety of the operation, low level of iron in the blood, lack of sleep, pain at the surgery site, etc.
Drink enough fluids:
If the cause of the headache after gastric sleeve operation in the patient is dehydration and the body remains dehydrated, enough water and fluids should be consumed.
The patient’s stomach after gastric sleeve operation will be much smaller than before.
Therefore, the patient cannot swig a large volume of liquids.
As a result, the patient must provide the water his body needs sip by sip throughout the day. Usually, all patients are advised to drink eight glasses of water and liquids during the day after surgery to prevent dehydration.
Using a timer as a simple solution to prevent dehydration is also recommended.
Considering you have not consumed liquids for 6-8 hours at night until the following day, starting your morning by drinking water is better. Then take another sip every half hour.
You can drink a cup of water or other permitted liquids at any time. In this way, your headache will be solved.
Allowed use of painkillers:
You can take the prescribed medications if drinking water does not help relieve the headache after gastric sleeve surgery.
The only drug allowed to relieve headaches after this procedure is simple acetaminophen without codeine.
Because the use of other painkillers, including NSAID drugs such as Diclofenac, Gelofen, etc., is prohibited after gastric sleeve surgery.
These drugs can cause stomach bleeding or ulcers.
Refer to a neurologist:
If your headache is not controlled by drinking enough fluids and painkillers and continues for more than five days, it is better to contact your surgeon Because your headache may be due to other reasons, including low blood pressure.
Of course, these headaches are accompanied by other symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, difficulty concentrating, and neck stiffness.
Diagnosing these problems is only the surgeon’s responsibility, and you should not use over-the-counter drugs to relieve your pain.
In addition to the solutions mentioned, being patient, having enough rest in bed, and using a cold compress can also improve your headache after gastric sleeve surgery.
Summary of headache after gastric sleeve operation:
It can be excruciating and disturbing.
Although these headaches are often caused by dehydration, you should seek medical attention if they persist.
So, without worrying, see your doctor so that all possible problems are examined, and the cause of the headache is diagnosed.
In this way, you can get rid of these excruciating pains.
Most of these headaches will improve independently with rest, drinking enough fluids, and over time and do not require treatment.
But if they persist and do not respond to regular treatments, it is necessary to see a doctor.
