Updated 10 October 2026
At a glance
- The American Society of Anesthesiologists suggests going to the pre-surgery meeting prepared to discuss your medical history, your health habits and your past experiences with surgery and anesthesia.
- The Arthritis Foundation advises writing down surgeries, ailments and broken bones, with when they happened and how they were treated.
- The procedure table, four steps and question lists below turn those general points into one dated page about your own history.
- Autoimmune Journey keeps symptoms, flares, labs and clinician notes in one dated history, and its Doctor Report exports a one-page summary a surgical team can read first.
People with an autoimmune condition often have a surgical history that is scattered: an operation years ago in another city, a minor procedure that never made it into the main file, a recovery that was harder than expected. When a new procedure is planned, that history matters to more than one clinician.
This guide gathers what surgery, anesthesia and arthritis organizations say about sharing your history, then builds a procedure table, four steps for assembling the record, a comparison of your autoimmune notes and the surgical team's notes, questions for the surgeon, anesthesia team and rheumatologist, and a one-page history to carry. It organizes information for conversations, and your clinicians decide what applies to you.
What surgery and anesthesia organizations say about sharing an autoimmune history
The organizations agree that the surgical team needs a full picture and leave the format to you. The American Society of Anesthesiologists suggests, in its preparing-for-surgery checklist, that you go to the pre-surgery meeting prepared to discuss your medical history, your health habits and your past experiences with surgery and anesthesia. Past experiences are part of the list, so earlier operations count.
The American College of Surgeons says it is important to fully inform your surgical team about everything you are taking before your surgery, including prescriptions, vitamins, minerals, herbs and other supplements, and its Strong for Surgery page adds that your surgeon needs to know what medicines, over-the-counter drugs and supplements and herbal remedies you are taking. Those pages are about medicines, and they show how much detail surgical teams expect.
On history, MedlinePlus advises going over any past or current health conditions or surgeries. The Arthritis Foundation gives the most practical wording for people without a ready list: if you cannot fill out your medical history ahead of time, write down all the problems you can remember, including surgeries, ailments and broken bones, as well as allergies, with when they happened and how they were treated.
For people with rheumatic disease, a spokesperson for the American College of Rheumatology said that patients with rheumatic diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis or psoriatic arthritis are at a much higher risk for adverse events, particularly infections, after total hip and total knee replacement. That sentence concerns joint replacement, and it is a reason to make sure your rheumatologist and surgeon are both aware of the plan.
None of these pages gives a template. The sections below supply one, and you can change it to suit your own history.
Autoimmune Journey (by Health Journey Labs) can supply the dates behind your surgical record: the Daily check-in carries physical symptoms, fatigue, joint or muscle pain and how the day went, so the weeks around each past procedure can be recalled from entries and not from memory.
A surgical history table with autoimmune disease: date, procedure, place and what followed
A surgical history table gives each operation or procedure one row. It captures the facts a new team needs and the autoimmune context that is easy to forget.
Surgical history table, by Autoimmune Journey
| Column | What to write | Why it helps |
|---|---|---|
| Date and place | The month and year, and the hospital or clinic | Lets a team request records |
| Procedure | What was done, in the words on your paperwork | Avoids mixing up similar operations |
| Anesthesia | The type if you know it, and anything that went unusually | Gives the anesthesia team past experience to review |
| Recovery | How long it took and what was harder than expected | Shows how your body responded |
| Autoimmune context | How your condition behaved in the weeks before and after | Links the operation to your own pattern |
Start with the procedures you remember best and add older ones as you find records. A row with only a year and a procedure name is still useful, and gaps can be marked "unknown" and filled in later.
The Arthritis Foundation advice to note when each problem happened and how it was treated fits the first, second and fourth columns. The autoimmune column is the one only you can fill, and it is the one a rheumatologist is likely to ask about.
Keep one copy where you can find it and one on your phone. The guide to starting tracking an autoimmune week before the label is finished offers an easy way to begin building the daily record that makes the last column possible.
Past procedures can be marked in the Daily Journal in Autoimmune Journey, which takes free text or voice, and the Flare Tracker flags days clearly worse than a usual week, so the autoimmune column has dated entries to draw on.
Four steps to build a record of autoimmune disease before any planned procedure
Assembling the record takes a few short sessions and pays off whenever a new procedure appears on the calendar. Four steps keep it manageable.
Build your surgical record before any planned procedure
Autoimmune Journey lists every operation and procedure.
- List every operation and procedure you can remember, with the year and the place, and mark the ones you are unsure about.
- Ask the clinics or hospitals for any records you lack, and add the dates and procedure names from them.
- Beside each row, write how your autoimmune condition behaved in the weeks before and after.
- Bring the table to your next rheumatology and surgical appointments, and update it after each one.
Step two follows the practical logic of the American Society of Anesthesiologists checklist: a team that is going to ask about your past experiences with surgery and anesthesia is helped by documents. Records can take time to arrive, so start early.
From Autoimmune Journey, we recommend writing the autoimmune notes in plain words and dates, such as "flare two weeks after, back to baseline by week six," since a clinician can read that at a glance. The notes are descriptions and do not predict what will happen next time.
Share the table with both a surgeon and a rheumatologist. They may weigh different parts of it, and each can ask for more detail (Autoimmune Journey checklist). Medicine questions around any procedure are decided by your clinicians together, so bring the question and leave the decision to them. Contact your clinic promptly if you notice new symptoms before a planned procedure.
The My Labs entries in Autoimmune Journey keep result dates for panels, autoantibodies and inflammatory markers, so the weeks before an operation can be matched to lab dates when the table is assembled.
Your autoimmune notes and the surgical team's notes, compared
Your autoimmune record and the surgical team's record are written for different purposes, and putting them side by side shows what each leaves out.
Your notes and the surgical team's notes
Autoimmune Journey compares the two records.
| Topic | Your autoimmune notes | The surgical team's notes |
|---|---|---|
| Past operations | Dates, recovery and how the condition behaved | Procedure names and operative details |
| Symptoms | Daily fatigue, pain, flares and function | Findings at the time of the procedure |
| Lab results | Dates beside symptoms | Results ordered for the procedure |
| Concerns | Worries about flares or recovery | Risks they have identified |
| Next steps | Questions for your rheumatologist | Instructions for before and after |
Read the table by column. The left column is the daily picture over months, and the right is a snapshot around a procedure. Neither is complete alone, and a clinician who sees both can ask better questions.
The American College of Surgeons emphasis on fully informing your surgical team is easiest to meet when your own record is organized. The left column is the part you can bring that the team may not otherwise have.
Ask for a copy of the surgical team's summary after each procedure, and file it with your table. The guide to preparing for a short autoimmune visit with fatigue notes helps turn the left column into a short opening for the next appointment.
Everything in the left column can come from Autoimmune Journey, where the Daily check-in and Flare Tracker feed both columns, so the notes and the dates come from the same entries.
Questions about autoimmune disease for the surgeon, the anesthesia team and your rheumatologist
Different clinicians answer different questions, so it helps to sort yours before the appointment. Choose the ones that apply and add your own.
Questions for the surgeon, anesthesia team and rheumatologist
Autoimmune Journey splits questions among the three.
- For the surgeon: given my autoimmune history, is there anything about this procedure that you want my rheumatologist to weigh in on?
- For the surgeon: what should I expect for recovery, and what would make you want to hear from me early?
- For the anesthesia team: here are my past experiences with anesthesia, and is there anything in them you want to follow up?
- For the rheumatologist: how should we handle my condition in the weeks around the procedure?
- For the rheumatologist: which lab results do you want to see beforehand, and when?
- For everyone: who coordinates the plan between the teams, and whom do I call with a question?
The American Society of Anesthesiologists guidance to discuss your past experiences with surgery and anesthesia is the basis of the third question. A one-line note from your table, such as "nausea after the 2019 operation", is enough to start that conversation.
The American College of Rheumatology statement about higher risk of adverse events after joint replacement for people with rheumatic disease is a reason to ask the sixth question early. Coordination between teams is a common weak point, and it helps to name who owns it.
Put the one question you care about most first. Write answers in the clinician's own words, and ask for anything unclear to be repeated. The guide to getting through an autoimmune flare day without losing notes is useful for the recovery period.
The AI companions in Autoimmune Journey already see what you have logged, so they can help word these questions from your own entries, with the clinical interpretation left to your clinicians.
A one-page autoimmune history to carry to a pre-surgery appointment
Before a planned procedure, a single page can carry the table's main points. It saves time and keeps the first meeting focused on the plan.
A good page has five lines. The first states your autoimmune diagnosis and the clinician who follows it. The second lists your past procedures with years and places. The third notes any recovery that was harder than expected. The fourth gives your recent flare dates and lab dates. The fifth gives the date you wrote the page and the contact for your rheumatology office.
Keep it to one side of paper. A surgeon or anesthesia team with limited time will read a single page, and a long document may go unread. Bring the full table in case a question needs detail.
The American Society of Anesthesiologists checklist and the MedlinePlus advice to go over past or current health conditions and surgeries are both easier to follow with the page in hand. Update it after every procedure and every flare, since an old page can mislead as easily as a missing one.
Share the page with your rheumatologist before the surgery date, so that both teams work from the same facts. If your condition changes sharply before the procedure, contact a clinician without waiting for the appointment.
Before the pre-surgery appointment, My Care Team in Autoimmune Journey keeps visit prep with what to ask and bring, and the Doctor Report exports a one-page summary of dates, flares, fatigue, labs and how you functioned.
How Autoimmune Journey can help
A notebook and a printed page are enough to begin this record, and many people do exactly that. When you want flares, labs and clinician notes in one dated history that surgical and rheumatology teams can read, the best autoimmune apps guide compares the options.
Autoimmune Journey is a personal autoimmune tracker from Health Journey Labs on the App Store and Google Play. For surgical history, it lets you keep the weeks around each procedure beside your daily symptoms, so the autoimmune column of the table is filled from entries. After a few updates, the page shows how your condition behaved around each procedure and gives every clinician the same starting point. Below is what you can use and how each part helps.
- Daily check-in — Logs physical symptoms, emotional state, nutrition, sleep, exercise, meds, external factors; app-specific items: fatigue, joint or muscle pain, fog, inflammation notes, how the day went; read together with the rest of the logged history.
- Flare Tracker — Logs flag a day clearly worse than the usual hard week, onset, intensity, short note; read together with history across weeks (one-off spike vs repeating pattern).
- Daily Journal — Logs free-text notes, voice entry; app-specific items: what you canceled, partner talks, visit debriefs, leftover guilt, a work hour left unfinished; read together with scores and other logged history (adds context).
- Weekly Goals — Logs one small aim, whether it held; read together with real check-ins.
- My Labs — Logs result dates; app-specific items: panels, autoantibodies, inflammatory markers, other workups; read together with function and symptoms.
- My Meds — Logs medicine names, timing, dose; app-specific items: as-needed doses you actually use; read together with fatigue, sleep, pain, the rest of the tracked history.
- AI companions — Logs Clara (general chat), specialist companions; app-specific items: knowledge, fitness, nutrition, relationships; read together with your logged history (companions already see it); used for: visit wording; a calm partner script; a soft work line; a listening ear after a hard day.
- Doctor Report — Logs one-page summary exported from logged history; app-specific items: dates, flares, fatigue, sleep, meds, labs, how you functioned; read together with the history already logged.
- Learn — Logs short education topics, prompts; app-specific items: flares, fatigue, labs beside symptoms, visit prep, sleep; read together with your own logged weeks.
- My Assessments — Logs structured check-ins beyond daily scores, onboarding life and social context; read together with ongoing history.
- My Care Team — Logs clinicians, short visit notes; app-specific items: tends to ask mainly about one lab rather than energy or multi-system days; read together with logged history; used for: visit prep (what to ask and bring); notes during the visit; review afterward.
- Food Tracker — Logs meal or drink lines; read together with fatigue, joint symptoms, gut symptoms, sleep.
- Weight Tracker — Logs scale or body notes; read together with energy, sleep, flare weeks.
- Period Tracker — Logs start and stop dates, flow, how heavy or light bleeding felt; read together with pain or energy, everything else logged.
Everything you log builds one history, and insights get stronger as it grows. Custom symptoms let you add your own labels.
We make Autoimmune Journey at Health Journey Labs. This guide is educational and does not replace medical advice. Diagnosis, medication decisions, and urgent care decisions belong with your treating clinicians.
Sources
- American College of Surgeons: Preparing for surgery, medications
- American College of Surgeons: Strong for Surgery, medicines
- American Society of Anesthesiologists: Preparing for surgery checklist
- Arthritis Foundation: First appointment with a rheumatologist
- MedlinePlus: Preparing for surgery
- American College of Rheumatology: Updated guideline for total hip and knee replacement
FAQ
The answers below draw on the sources cited in this guide, and the app they mention is Autoimmune Journey (by Health Journey Labs).
Why does surgical history matter with an autoimmune condition?
The American Society of Anesthesiologists suggests discussing your medical history and past experiences with surgery and anesthesia, and your condition may have behaved in particular ways around earlier procedures. A dated record gives each team the facts.
Entries in Autoimmune Journey build one shared history, so the weeks around a past procedure can be recalled from dated notes and not from memory, which makes the table easier to fill.
What should the table include?
For each operation, note the date and place, the procedure in the words on your paperwork, the anesthesia if known, how recovery went and how your autoimmune condition behaved before and after.
The Daily Journal in Autoimmune Journey takes free text or voice, so a note about a past recovery can be added whenever you remember it and filed with the date it belongs to.
What if I cannot remember every procedure?
The Arthritis Foundation advises writing down what you can remember, including surgeries, ailments and broken bones, with when they happened and how they were treated. Mark unknown items and fill them in as records arrive.
Custom symptoms in Autoimmune Journey let you add labels in your own words, such as slow recovery after surgery, so details you recall later can be filed beside the right days.
How do I get records from an old hospital?
Ask the hospital or clinic's records office what they need, which usually includes your name, date of birth and the approximate dates. Start early because records can take time to arrive.
My Care Team within Autoimmune Journey keeps clinician names and short visit notes, so you can see who was involved in which period and whom to contact when you request papers.
Should my rheumatologist see the table?
Yes. The American College of Rheumatology notes a much higher risk of adverse events after joint replacement in people with rheumatic disease, which is a reason for your rheumatologist and surgeon to coordinate. Share the table with both.
The Doctor Report in Autoimmune Journey exports a one-page summary of dates, flares, fatigue, labs and how you functioned, which suits a rheumatology visit before a planned procedure and gives the rheumatologist the same dated picture the surgical team will see.
What does the surgical team want to know about my medicines?
The American College of Surgeons says it is important to fully inform your surgical team about all the medications you are taking, including supplements. Decisions about medicines around surgery are made by your clinicians.
My Labs in Autoimmune Journey keeps result dates, and the history holds your own notes, so the list of what you bring to a pre-surgery meeting is easy to assemble and check against your records.
What belongs in the autoimmune context column?
Plain words and dates: for example, a flare two weeks after the procedure and a return to baseline by week six. These are descriptions of what happened and offer no forecast of what will happen next time.
A day flagged in the Flare Tracker of Autoimmune Journey carries an onset, an intensity and a short note, so the autoimmune column can be written from dated entries and read quickly by a clinician.
Can I use the table for a minor procedure?
Yes. Minor procedures can still matter to a new team, and a single row with a date and name takes little effort to add. A short row now can save a long search later. The page is easiest to keep up to date if every procedure goes in.
Entries in Autoimmune Journey stay in one dated history, so a small procedure and the days around it can be found later without searching through separate notes or papers, and the row for it is quick to write.
Who coordinates between the surgeon and the rheumatologist?
It varies, and it is worth asking directly. Ask each team who owns the plan, whom you should call with questions and how they will share information with each other, then write the answers on your page.
Notes in the Daily Journal of Autoimmune Journey can hold the names and answers you were given, saved with the date, so you can find who agreed to coordinate when you need to follow up, and what each team said it would do.
Can a tracker or chatbot decide anything about my surgery?
A tracker or an AI chat can organize dated entries and help word questions for the visit. Decisions about surgery, anesthesia and medicines belong with your surgeon, anesthesia team and rheumatologist.
The AI companions in Autoimmune Journey can see your logged history, so they can help draft a short question list from your own entries while your clinicians interpret what the details mean.
What if my symptoms change sharply before the procedure?
Contact a clinician promptly, and give them the date it began and what changed. A feeling that you might harm yourself, or severe symptoms, call for your local emergency number straight away.
A flagged day in the Flare Tracker of Autoimmune Journey with a Daily Journal line gives whoever you contact the date, the intensity and what changed, so the first minutes of the conversation go straight to the problem itself.
How often should I update the one-page history?
After every procedure, every flare worth mentioning and every new lab result you want clinicians to see. A page with a clear date at the bottom makes it obvious how current it is, and easy to replace.
Because Autoimmune Journey keeps every entry in one history, you can refresh the page from recent entries before an appointment, and the insights strengthen as more weeks are recorded, which keeps the page current without much retyping.
Can a partner or relative help me gather the history?
Often, yes. A relative may remember dates, places or recoveries you have forgotten, and can help request records. Tell them which part you would like help with, since a specific request is simple to act on.
A note in Autoimmune Journey can hold what a relative remembered and the date you wrote it down, so you can see later which details came from records and which from memory.
Who should see my symptom notes, and what about privacy?
An autoimmune record can name several diagnoses, lab results and medicines that change the way an employer or insurer sees you. Lock the phone, skip shared computers, and before you send a copy to a new specialist, remove anything that visit does not need.
With Autoimmune Journey, you decide which health notes to add. Read the app's privacy policy to see how data is stored and handled. This guide gives general information, not medical advice.