Helping Your Child Recover From Surgery
A general guide for parents and carers: what tends to help before the day, what's commonly normal afterwards, and the warning signs that need urgent attention. For a specific operation, see our day-by-day guide below where available.
More specific children's surgery guides are being added. Don't see your child's operation? Their hospital's own patient information sheet: often from a children's hospital like RCH, Great Ormond Street or CHOP. Is the best specific source until we do.
As per Royal Children's Hospital Melbourne guidance, a few things genuinely help most families:
- Check the fasting instructions in your admission letter carefully and make sure you understand exactly when your child needs to stop eating and drinking. Getting this wrong can delay or cancel surgery. Regular prescribed medicines can usually still be given with a small sip of water, but confirm this with your team.
- Your child will usually meet the anaesthetist beforehand (often the morning of surgery, or at a pre-admission appointment). This is your chance to mention allergies, past reactions to anaesthesia, and any concerns.
- Numbing cream can be applied 45–90 minutes before the procedure to make an IV line more comfortable. Some children are also given a calming premedication before going to theatre. Ask what your hospital offers.
- Age-appropriate preparation helps reduce anxiety: many children's hospitals have their own explainer videos or "comfort kids" style resources. Ask your hospital what they recommend for your child's age.
- Pack a favourite comfort toy, a change of clothes, and something familiar for the trip home.
Every child and every procedure is different, but these are commonly reported and usually settle on their own:
- A fever of 38°C or higher
- Vomiting that won't stop, or can't keep fluids down
- Signs of dehydration (very few wet nappies/trips to the toilet, no tears, unusually drowsy)
- Pain that isn't settling with the pain relief you've been given
- Bleeding, wound swelling, redness or discharge
- Anything else your child's own surgical or anaesthetic team told you to watch for
Emergency: 000 (AU) · 999 (UK) · 911 (US): or contact your hospital's ward directly if you were given a number.
These are reputable, evidence-based children's hospitals and organisations: a good place to look for guidance specific to your child's operation or hospital.
ⓘ If your own hospital or surgical team gave you a specific fact sheet or discharge instructions, those always take priority over general information from any website, including this one.
Postopcare.info also provides a free personalised day-by-day recovery guide, daily checklists, symptom tracking, medication reminders, and a clinic summary to share with your child's team. No login. No app. Works on any device.
Start a recovery guide →Your recovery toolkit
Free interactive tools to track your recovery day by day. Everything stays on your device — nothing is uploaded or shared.
These tools support — never replace — the advice of your surgical team. If something feels wrong, contact your doctor or emergency services.