Hi Dr. Grief,My 77 year old mother just had a sub-total colectomy 72 hours ago. She is in excellent physical health besides her diabetes. They removed 31 cm of her ascending colon and created a J pouch interior. Post care-ICU- The nasogastric tube and catheter removed yesterday. She is urinating and eating ice chips. She is very warm, (I do not have temp), and is reported as having a low blood count???? Also is slurring very badly???? What could be going on and what are they looking for with more blood draws?
HI, thanks for using Chat Doctor Fever post surgery can be due to the bodies inflammatory reaction to the trauma of surgery or can be related to infection. At this stage, if she is febrile then it is most likely due to infection. Infection could be (1)at the surgical site, (2) within the abdomen, (3)in the urinary tract especially if she has a catheter, (4) as a result of pneumoniaThey may be taking blood to determine if they could identify the bacteria involved and also to monitor her blood count levels if it is low. I hope this helps