Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Why do doctors ask patients to remove their nail paint before going into operation theatre?

The nail bed is one of the best places to detect any bluish discoloration (cyanosis) caused by low oxygen levels.Looking at the oxygen level of the person is one of the priorities during operation, the reason why nail paints are removed before going into operation theater.





Recently a device called pulse oximeter is in common use. Such device measures the level of oxygen in the blood and works by passing red light through tissue, most commonly a finger tip,and measures the amount of oxygenation in the circlation. Nail polish reduces the effectiveness of such monitor, thus nail paints have to be removed.





Long ago, when pulse oximeters are not yet in use, colorless nail paints are OK, but currently it is obligatory to remove all nail paints or polish before sending the patient to an operation theater (operating rooms).Why do doctors ask patients to remove their nail paint before going into operation theatre?
So they can check the capillary refill on the fingernails, toes , check circulation, may indicate how much/fast oxygen is getting on themWhy do doctors ask patients to remove their nail paint before going into operation theatre?
The skin color under the nail is a good health indicator. If you aren't getting enough oxygen and blood circulation, it can be determined by looking at the skin under the nails.
because they can tell if your circulation is okay by the color of your nails. if they turn blue or purple it is a bad sign.
Because it can carry infection and also because when they use the oxygen saturation machine the paint can be reflective and give them a false reading. Also the capillary refill is measured in the toes and fingers
Because we use a special peg which attaches to the finger and reads your oxygen levels in the little capilliariews (tiny blood vessels) in your finger tips. This tells us how well you are oxygenated. The device is called Pulse Oximetry or a Sats monitor and it needs to be able to read through your nail. Nail polish causes false readings.
The color of the nail bed is a guide to oxygenation, and capillary refill a guide to perfusion. Neither is as important as in times past, with modern monitoring equipment, but it isn't as if polish is important compared to surgery.
People having surgery can get a serious wound infection from bacteria (germs) on the hands of operating theatre staff (doctors, nurses, and assistants). Theatre staff scrub their hands intensively before operations to reduce the number of bacteria on their hands. It may be that nail polish (varnish) hide bacteria and reduce the effectiveness of hand scrubbing.
Hi. The skin under your nails lets the staff know if your blood oxygen level is normal while you are under anesthesia. This is very important for the anesthesiologist to keep an eye on. I used to wonder the same thing and now I simply ask when the doctors say anything that I don't understand and that's how I got this answer. They will allow clear nail polish in most cases because they can see through it but it's probably in your best interest to wear none at all. Hope this helps!
First thing, the Patient is sterilized using ethanol or spirit which reacts with the nail paint to form white residues on the nail which tend to weaken it.





Also, the colour of skin under nail hanges fastest if the patient is cold, or short of oxygen. It gives an alarm to the surgeon so they act before its too late.
What's operation theater?? I do know that nail paint is removed because it contains metals and could interfere with medical equipment.

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