1. What information does the team need about my medicine?
Bring the exact medication name, dose, schedule, reason for treatment, and the date of the most recent dose. Include recent increases, missed doses, and any plan to change the prescription before surgery. A brand name remembered approximately is less useful than a current medication list or photograph of the label. Tell both the surgical and anesthesia teams; do not assume a medicine prescribed elsewhere already appears correctly in every record. Ask which clinician will confirm the final instruction and how that instruction will reach you before the day of the procedure.
Sources: ASA — Multi-society GLP-1 Perioperative Guidance · American Society of Anesthesiologists — Surgery Preparation Checklist
2. Do my digestive symptoms change the plan?
GLP-1 medicines can delay stomach emptying, which is relevant to aspiration risk with general anesthesia or deep sedation. Report nausea, vomiting, abdominal discomfort, bloating, or constipation and say whether these symptoms are new or persistent. The early dose-escalation period and other conditions affecting stomach emptying may also matter. Avoid deciding for yourself that a mild symptom is irrelevant or that no symptoms guarantee an empty stomach. The team needs the information to assess your situation. If symptoms change after the preoperative call, contact the team again instead of relying on the earlier discussion.
3. Should I continue or pause the medicine?
Multi-society guidance released in 2024 supports continuation for many patients while emphasizing individualized assessment for those at higher risk. That does not translate into a universal instruction for your procedure. Ask the anesthesia clinician and prescriber to agree on the plan, including the implications of interrupting treatment for diabetes or another condition. Do not stop, restart, or change the dose solely because a friend received different instructions. If written advice conflicts, ask the teams to reconcile it. The safest useful answer is one that applies to your medication, health, and anesthesia plan.
4. Are special eating or drinking instructions needed?
The team may use measures such as tailored dietary instructions, changes to the anesthesia plan, or additional assessment in selected circumstances. Ask for the exact instructions that apply to you and how they relate to the standard fasting information. Do not substitute an online liquid-diet schedule for the facility's plan. Clarify what to do if you accidentally eat or drink outside the instructions, or if the procedure time changes. Reporting that honestly gives the anesthesia team the information needed to make a safe decision; trying to compensate on your own does not.
Sources: ASA — Multi-society GLP-1 Perioperative Guidance · American Society of Anesthesiologists — Surgery Preparation Checklist
5. Who handles blood sugar and restarting treatment?
If the plan involves an interruption, ask the prescribing clinician how the condition being treated will be managed during that period. For someone with diabetes, that may require specific instructions about monitoring or other medicines. Those instructions must come from the clinical team, not a generic surgery checklist. Also ask who will decide when and how to resume the prescription after the procedure. Eating, symptoms, and the treatment history may affect that discussion. Put the contact information beside the written plan so a question after discharge reaches the right clinician.
Sources: ASA — Multi-society GLP-1 Perioperative Guidance · American Society of Anesthesiologists — Surgery Preparation Checklist
6. What should I confirm before arriving?
Review the medication instruction, food and drink instruction, procedure time, and contact route together. State any change in dose, symptoms, or health since the plan was made. If you have not received a clear answer, contact the team before arrival rather than guessing. Bring the current medication list even if you previously uploaded it. A short written summary can prevent confusion between an older instruction and the final plan. The purpose is to arrive with the same understanding as the people caring for you, including what to do if the procedure must be delayed.
Keep older instructions separate from the final version so a caregiver does not accidentally follow an outdated message. If the procedure is rescheduled, ask whether the medication and dietary plan still applies to the new date. A scheduling change may alter the timing of a dose or the information the team needs to review.
Sources: American Society of Anesthesiologists — Surgery Preparation Checklist
Make the most of your visit
Questions to bring to your consultation
Choose the questions that matter most to you. Bring them along, and ask us to explain anything that is unclear.
- Which medication details do you need before the anesthesia assessment?
- Do my recent dose changes or digestive symptoms alter my risk?
- Who confirms whether I continue or pause this medicine?
- Which food and drink instructions apply specifically to me?
- Who manages blood sugar or other treatment needs during an interruption?
- Who tells me when and how to resume treatment after the procedure?
Sources & further reading
- ASA — Multi-society GLP-1 Perioperative Guidanceasahq.org · Published February 18, 2025
- American Society of Anesthesiologists — Surgery Preparation Checklistmadeforthismoment.asahq.org
We use these medical sources to help explain your options and prepare you for a conversation with our team. Our guides feature our own clinicians; patient reviews describe individual experiences.
