Preoperative Medical Exams & Tests

You must undergo a preoperative examination by your primary care physician or pediatrician. The ICLL staff does not perform routine preoperative examinations. (Please note that the presurgical visit at the ICLL is different from the preoperative examination.) Call the surgeon’s secretary and provide the name and phone number of the primary care physician or pediatrician and the date of the preoperative examination.

Time Frame for Preoperative Examination

The preoperative examination must be performed 1 to 4 weeks before surgery by your primary care physician or pediatrician. Many walk-in clinics also offer preoperative examination services. If you have any difficulties scheduling the examination within this time frame, please contact the surgeon’s secretary for guidance.

Required Preoperative Examination Forms

• Preoperative examination forms must be received by our office 7 to 30 days before the surgery or the surgery may need to be rescheduled. It is not sufficient to provide us with the preoperative examination forms on the day of surgery or during your presurgical visit at the ICLL because the paperwork must be reviewed by Sinai Hospital’s Department of Anesthesia before your surgery. Your physician’s staff should fax the forms to us as soon as they are available.
• The surgeon’s secretary will mail you the forms and a list of required tests.
• We prefer that you use Sinai Hospital’s forms, but your primary care physician or pediatrician can also use his or her own forms as long as they contain the same information. Electronic medical records (“computer forms”) are also acceptable.
• Please make sure that the physician signs and dates the form and indicates that you are cleared for surgery.
• Please ask your primary care physician or pediatrician for copies of the completed forms for your records and bring the copies with you on the day of your presurgical visit and on the day of your surgery in case they are needed.

Forms for Additional Tests

Sinai Hospital requires additional testing (blood test, EKG, etc.) depending on your age and any conditions you may have. All women and girls of childbearing age will also need to have a pregnancy test as part of their preoperative examination or on the day of surgery; the pregnancy test must be done within seven days prior to surgery. The forms explaining which tests are necessary are included in the package that the secretary will send to you. The “Anesthesia Preoperative Testing Guidelines” handout is also available on our web site.

Additional Medical Clearances for Medical Conditions

Additional clearance might be needed if you have any medical conditions. For example, if you have a known heart condition, you will need to obtain clearance from a cardiologist. Find out if you need special clearance and schedule any necessary appointments with your specialists. Please make certain the specialist faxes us the required forms 7 to 30 days before the surgery. The Department of Anesthesia will cancel surgery if required clearances or test results have not been received.