Preoperative assessment in patients presenting for elective surgery

Preoperative assessment of patients undergoing elective surgery is vital to ensure patients have underlying comorbidities identified, appropriate investigations performed and are optimized prior to the day of surgery. Anaesthetic pre-assessment is usually initiated at the pre-assessment clinic. A thorough assessment should include a careful history and examination as well as assessment of both the airway and functional capacity. This article provides a systematic approach to the assessment process.