On for 30 minutes, off for 30 minutes
We provide every patient with an ice-pack to put on their wound to help keep the swelling down. Our nurses will put fresh ice in it just before you leave. We want you to use this 30 minutes every hour (30 minutes on, and 30 minutes off). We are quite happy if you decide you want to keep it on for an hour or more at a time if that is what you want to do. However, we have found that the ice doesn’t help much after the first day. So our recommendations are to stop using the ice-pack at bedtime the day of surgery. If you feel better using it the next day then feel free to do so, but most people should use it only the day of surgery.
You will get blood on the ice pack
Don’t freak out if you get a little blood spot (or a few) on the ice pack. This is perfectly fine and we expect it to happen! So please don’t call us about some blood spots on the ice pack… it makes us pull our hair out! This is supposed to happen. No worries!