Nurses General Nursing Nursing Q/A
caringRN
16 Posts
Does anyone have any good ideas for post-op constipation (with narcotic use)? I see this so much and want to give my patients the best advice I can.
DianeS, RN
284 Posts
Where I work we do what we call "brown cows". Milk of mag mixed with warm prune juice. Usually results in 4-6 hours.
Smiles and hugs. ❤️
Cute_CNA, CNA
475 Posts
Prune juice! Lots of it!
Edit: milk can sometimes make you go, too.
WSU_Ally_RN, BSN, RN
459 Posts
Most all post-op's I've seen are either on colace or miralax or something to that effect. If they're not, maybe suggest it to the doc??
gwenith, BSN, RN
3,755 Posts
We use BD prune juice for ICU patients - works well. I have heard though, that pear juice is as effective and tastes better.
DDRN4me
761 Posts
Old nursing home trick ...8 oz of warm prune juice BID! the "brown cow " is effective but often results in cramping. ?
truern
2,016 Posts
Something that's often overlooked is coffee. If your patient is a coffee drinker and hasn't been having their daily cuppa joe, they're especially prone to getting constipated.
Trust me...I know
4theBetterGetter, RN
121 Posts
Warm prune juice followed by a cup of hot coffee. Works like a charm!
z's playa
2,056 Posts
Have a Bran muffin....a big cup of coffee...then get in your car...you are GUARANTEED to get stuck in traffic and... ?
SmilingBluEyes
20,964 Posts
LOTS OF WATER! The colon needs plenty of water to absorb and soften material for passing .......
Early and frequent ambulation! you have to MOVE to get your BOWELS to move! Encourage frequent (q2 hour) ambulation while awake in your patient, if not contraindicated.
And an early course of stool softeners is in order. Esp with narcotic use, I just start all my patients on Colace as ordered, as soon as they can take PO food/meds. Don't overlook the value of stool softeners in a post-op medication regimen! If that fails, MOM is ordered as a backup for us. Usually this and lots of fruit juice seems to help where I am.
flashpoint
1,327 Posts
We give our patients "crappuccino." Milk of mag, prune juice, and molassses...all dumped into a coffee cup, mixed with a bit of warm water, and microwaved to a nice "coffee" temperature...
I just love the barfy smiley...
gypsyatheart
705 Posts
cotjockey said: We give our patients "crappuccino." Milk of mag, prune juice, and molassses...all dumped into a coffee cup, mixed with a bit of warm water, and microwaved to a nice "coffee" temperature...
OMG! "crappuccino"...
I don't know why but that just sounds hilarious!! ?
"Crappuccino" is just disgusting...smells and looks like what it makes you do...tastes bad, looks bad, works soooo good!
caringRN
16 Posts
Does anyone have any good ideas for post-op constipation (with narcotic use)? I see this so much and want to give my patients the best advice I can.