If you’re having surgery or a procedure with anesthesia or deep sedation, your GLP-1 belongs on the medication list the team reviews. Mention it even if you take it for weight management and don’t think of it as related to the procedure.
Tell the procedure team early
GLP-1 medicines can slow stomach emptying. That matters when anesthesia or deep sedation affects the body’s usual protective reflexes, because stomach contents can enter the lungs. The team needs enough time to consider your situation and give you clear instructions.
Share the exact medicine, formulation, prescribed schedule, and date of your last dose. Mention whether you recently started treatment or changed dose, and whether you have nausea, vomiting, reflux, constipation, or a feeling that food is sitting heavily.
Ask for one coordinated plan
Your prescriber, procedure clinician, and anesthesia team may need to coordinate. Ask who is responsible for the final instructions and where you can find them in writing.
Useful questions include:
- Should I continue or hold this specific medicine?
- What food and drink instructions apply before the procedure?
- What should I do if symptoms appear or I accidentally miss an instruction?
- When and how should treatment resume afterward?
There isn’t a universal stop-and-restart rule that fits every product, procedure, and patient. Don’t use an old online post to replace the team’s current instructions.
Include the rest of your medicines
If you use the medicine for diabetes or take other blood-sugar-lowering treatments, say so. Holding medication or changing food intake may require a separate monitoring plan. Also list supplements and over-the-counter products.
If two sets of instructions seem inconsistent, ask for clarification before making a change. Don’t combine half of one plan with half of another.
Speak up on the day
Tell the team if you took a dose differently from the plan, ate or drank outside the instructions, or developed new symptoms. They need accurate information to decide how to proceed.
For an urgent procedure, share the medication details as soon as you can. You don’t need to solve the anesthesia decision yourself; your job is to make sure the people making it have the information they need.