Surgery
Most people wake up a few hours after their brain surgery. When it is safe, you will go to the ward. Some people may go to the intensive care unit (ICU) or high dependency unit (HDU) after their surgery.
Rarely, your surgeon may decide to keep you asleep for a few days after surgery to help you recover. They use medicines called sedatives to keep you asleep.
You are likely to feel drowsy or sleepy when you wake up. This is normal and is caused by the anaesthetic and pain relief medicines you have been given.
You, or your relatives, may also notice that your head or face are swollen and bruised. This swelling will go down over time.
The information on this page covers what happens immediately after and the first few days after surgery for a brain or spinal cord tumour.
Find out about long term recovery and problems after brain surgery
How long you stay in hospital depends on what operation you have. You will need to allow yourself time to recover when you get home.
Some people might need to go to the intensive care (ICU) unit or the high dependency unit (HDU) after their surgery. You then move back to the ward within a day or so. How long you stay in the ICU or HDU is different for everyone.
In the ICU or HDU, you have very close nursing care. This is usually one to one (or two to one) nursing care. The nurses and doctors keep a very close eye on your progress. These units are clinical, busy and often noisy places. Some people find them strange and disorienting.
When you first wake up, you usually have checks every 15 minutes.
Your nurse will do regular checks to see how you are. They may ask you simple questions or ask you to do things, like squeeze their hand or move your fingers or toes. This helps them see how alert you are and how well you understand instructions. They may also shine a light into your eyes to see if the pupils react.
You usually have:
a blood pressure cuff on your arm
a clip on your finger called pulse oximetry to check your heart rate and oxygen levels
sticky pads on your chest called ECG leads to monitor your heart
When you wake up, you will have a dressing over your wound and may have a bandage around your head. This is usually left alone for a few days. Your surgeon or specialist nurse can tell you more about this.
Stitches or surgical clips can usually come out between 5 to 14 days after surgery. Some surgeons use stitches that slowly dissolve by themselves, so you don't need to have them removed.
If your head was shaved during the operation, it may be a shock when you first see yourself. Your hair will grow back but the speed at which it grows can vary between people. Your head may be itchy at first. Try not to scratch too close to your wound.
Your doctor or nurse will explain how to look after the wound once you go home.
Speak to your nurse about how soon you can wash your hair after surgery. When you do wash your hair, it is important to gently dry the wound and not to rub the area. Your nurse will show you how to do this.
Your jaw might be stiff and painful if your operation was between the side of your eye and hairline. This might last a few days or weeks after surgery. You may find it difficult to open your jaw wide. This is because the surgeon had to move or cut the muscles of your jaw. Making chewing movements can help with this.
You might notice that you have several tubes in place. This can be a bit frightening. It might help to know what all the tubes are for.
Not everyone has all of these tubes. The tubes you may have include:
You might have an oxygen mask over your mouth and nose. It gives you extra oxygen.
You might have drips to give you medicines, blood transfusions and fluids until you are eating and drinking normally. The drips are attached to a small tube called a cannula in your hand or arm. Or they may be attached to a long line in your neck called a central line.
You might have a tube into an artery in your arm. Doctors and nurses use this tube to take blood samples and accurately measure your blood pressure.
You might have one or more tubes coming out of your wound. These are called drains and they connect to bags or bottles. They drain blood and tissue fluid from the operation site.
You may also have a tube coming out of your head bandage called external ventricular drain (EVD). This drains excess fluid from the brain and stops the fluid building up (hydrocephalus).
This is so you nurses can measure how much urine you are producing. It helps them check that you are getting enough fluids.
The tube is taped to your nose and cheek. It is usually attached to a bag and can help with sickness.
This is a tube from your head which is connected to a monitor. It measures the pressure inside your head. The ICP monitor is usually removed after a day or so.
Having the right amount of fluids in your body is important, especially in the first few days after surgery. Too little fluids lead to dehydration. Keeping the fluid balance right helps to stop the swelling around the brain.
Your nurses will record how much you drink and how much urine you are making to make sure you have the right balance.
You might have a headache when you wake up. You have painkillers to help control this. You have painkillers through the drip until you start eating and drinking again.
Your nurses and doctors will ask you whether you have pain. Tell them if you think the painkillers aren’t controlling the pain. They can adjust the dose if necessary.
Surgery can cause swelling in the brain. This increases the pressure inside the skull and can make your symptoms worse for a short time.
You might need to have steroids after surgery. Steroids can reduce swelling and pressure around the brain. This can help to reduce symptoms.
You might be able to stop taking steroids once you have fully recovered from surgery. Your doctor will tell you how to slowly reduce the steroid dose. There is no fixed treatment time for steroids, it varies from person to person. Some people need to carry on taking them for a long time.
Find out more about steroids and its possible side effects
It is common to take medicine to prevent seizures (fits). These are called anti epileptics or anti convulsants.
Seizures can be a symptom of raised pressure inside the skull. They might also be caused by irritation of the nerve cells of the brain.
You may be able to stop taking these medicines once you have fully recovered from surgery. But some people need to take them for longer.
When you are fully awake, your nurse will give you a few sips of water. They watch carefully to make sure you don't have any problems swallowing. This can sometimes happen after brain surgery. A speech and language therapist (SALT) may check your swallowing before you are allowed anything to eat or drink.
Once you can manage sips of water without feeling or being sick, your nurse takes out the nasogastric tube if you have one. Gradually you can build up to having normal meals again.
A dietician might see you to make sure that you are getting the right amount of calories.
Brain surgery is a big operation. For the first few days, your nurses will help you to avoid straining. Straining might raise the pressure inside your skull.
After your surgery your nurses and physiotherapist will help you to get up and move around as soon as you feel well enough. For some people, this might be within a few hours of returning to the ward, for others it can be longer.
At first, this might seem very difficult, but moving helps you to get better quicker. It also helps reduce the risk of problems after surgery, such as blood clots in your legs. When you first start walking, you need to have someone with you.
Your surgeons and nurses will let you know when you can go home. The time that you stay in hospital depends on your recovery and general health.
About 1 to 3 days after surgery, you might have an or a , but not everyone needs one.
A scan can show if there is any tumour left and how much swelling there is in the area of the operation. Having a scan soon after surgery might feel uncomfortable. Your will support you and make sure you are as comfortable as possible during the scan.
It can take some time to recover from your surgery. You might want to read information about recovering after brain surgery next.
Read about recovery and possible problems after brain surgery
Last reviewed: 19 Jun 2026
Next review due: 19 Jun 2029
Surgeons remove all or part of your tumour. There are different ways of doing this.
You might have surgery to drain a build up of fluid on your brain (hydrocephalus).
You usually go into hospital the day before, or on the day of your surgery.
It can be difficult to find out that you have a brain tumour. There is practical and emotional support available to help you, your family and your friends cope with a brain or spinal cord tumour.
Primary brain tumours are cancers that start in the brain. Tumours can start in any part of the brain or related structures.
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