BEFORE YOUR VISIT
Here are some tips to make your visit run smoother:
1. Please look carefully at your scheduled appointment time. You will receive a call indicating that time for your appointment, as well as a recommended time for arrival which is approximately 30 minutes prior to your appointment. This is to allow you enough time to fill out the intake paperwork. This is to try to minimize any delays to be seen.
2. If you have had any prior surgery in the vicinity of the problem and question (for example, prior thyroid or parathyroid surgery), please be sure to bring your old pathology, operative reports, or clinic notes to allow for us to review this information. It is very helpful to have this information in advance, but if this is not possible, at least having this information at the time of your clinic visit will provide optimal clinical information to make a good procedural decision. If you do not have this information, please be prepared to sign a medical release form to permit us to retrieve this information on your behalf.
3. If you have an issue with your thyroid or parathyroid gland, you will most likely undergo an ultrasound in the office with your provider. Please wear loose fitting clothing around your neck and remove any jewelry such as necklaces which may be in the way of your ultrasound. Avoid wearing turtlenecks or other high collar clothing items as these can be challenging to navigate around. Even if you have had a previous ultrasound, it is very likely that your provider will want to repeat the ultrasound, although it would not be charged again.
4. If you have had surgery on your neck previously (thyroid, parathyroid, spine fusion, carotid surgery, etc.), it is likely that you will require laryngoscopy in advance of your procedure. Oftentimes, this is done after you have scheduled surgery, but sometimes this could be done at your initial consultation, particularly if you are coming from a long distance.
5. If you have a thyroid nodule that has not been biopsied, a needle aspiration biopsy may be recommended at your visit. If you are taking a blood thinner such as Eliquis, Xarelto, Coumadin, etc., this will have need to be stopped prior to your biopsy. Discontinuation of these medications can be discussed with you at your visit. The biopsy is done with ultrasound guidance and with local anesthetic. It is typically very well-tolerated. It does not require you to be fasting or to have any special transportation arrangements.
6. Please be patient. Sometimes the clinic is congested and unexpected issues with other patients can lead to the clinic running behind. We try very hard to make sure that your visit is very comprehensive and worthwhile for you, but sometimes that leads to the clinic running behind schedule. If it is too far behind schedule, you can feel free to reschedule to another date that is more convenient, otherwise be assured we will get to your case and work as diligently with you as with all of our prior patients.