Pay attention to 6 major nursing care after tongue cancer surgery

Cancer, no one likes this word, let alone encountering it, but our life cannot always be smooth sailing. When we don’t know what will happen tomorrow, we should cherish the present. And when the disease comes, please take good care of your life. So, if you have tongue cancer, what are the six major cares you should pay attention to after tongue cancer surgery? Next, let’s learn about it together.

Tongue cancer is the most common oral cancer, more common in men than in women. Most tongue cancers are squamous cell carcinomas, especially in the front two-thirds of the tongue. Adenocarcinomas are less common and are mostly located at the root of the tongue. Lymphoepithelial carcinoma and undifferentiated carcinomas can also occur at the root of the tongue. Tongue cancer is generally treated surgically, so how should you care after tongue cancer surgery?

Here are six key areas of care for tongue cancer:

1. After the operation, you should observe whether the drainage tube is unobstructed to prevent it from falling off, twisting, or leaking. Record the color, quality, and quantity of the drainage fluid, and report any abnormality to the doctor in time.

2. After the operation, the patient should lie flat without a pillow, tilt the head to the healthy side, and apply a brake on the neck to prevent pulling the vascular pedicle of the pectoralis major muscle. Twenty-four hours after the operation, the patient can be placed in a semi-sitting position, pat the back, and turn over frequently to prevent the occurrence of hypostatic pneumonia and bedsores, and keep the room temperature between 22 and 25 degrees.

3. After the operation, the changes in vital signs should be closely observed, especially breathing. The airway should be kept open. If a tracheotomy is performed, attention should be paid to timely suction of sputum to prevent obstruction and suffocation, and good care should be given to the tracheal cuff.

4. After surgery, feed nutritious meals through nasogastric tube for 24 hours, which lasts for seven to ten days. Before extubation, let the patient try to eat liquid food through mouth.

5. After the operation, antibiotics should be given as prescribed by the doctor to prevent infection, and blood transfusion or albumin should be given to enhance immunity if necessary.

6. After tongue cancer surgery, chemotherapy or radiotherapy should be performed, regular follow-up visits should be conducted, and a high-protein, high-nutrition diet should be ensured to keep the oral cavity clean.

Understand the above six major postoperative care for tongue cancer, pay close attention, and take good care of the patient.