Seven-week gap advised for elective surgery after Omicron

Despite a backlog of routine operations, NHS hospitals are being advised to delay elective surgical procedures by at least seven weeks if a patient has just had Omicron.

UK experts say it is a precaution since the first couple of months following infection is a riskier period, linked to poorer post-operative recovery.

In some circumstances the surgery may be urgent enough to go ahead, however. Patients should ideally have had all of their Covid vaccines too.

The advice has been issued by surgery and anaesthesia experts, including two Royal Colleges representing those professions.

The experts who drew up the recommendations say the desire to tackle waiting lists and backlogs must be balanced with delivering the safest care possible.

The latest expert guidance on routine operations recommends:

• Elective surgery should not take place within 10 days of a confirmed Covid infection, mainly because the patient may be infectious which is a risk to staff and other patients.
• Operations that happen in the six-week period after an infection - even an asymptomatic one - carry a higher risk of serious complications for the patient, experience suggests.

Dr Mike Nathanson, president of the Association of Anaesthetists, said: "The frustration felt by patients is immense and we - the healthcare professionals - want to do our jobs and provide these services when it is safe to do so and with the risks clear to all involved."

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Source: BBC News, 23 February 2022