Perioperative Lifestyle Optimization: Lifestyle Medicine Bridge to Surgical Recovery

Presentation Summary: Surgery is one of the most profound physiologic and psychological stressors patients encounter, and while Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) pathways have improved in-hospital outcomes, many determinants of surgical risk, recovery, and long-term resilience begin well before and extend well after the operative episode.

This concurrent session introduces Perioperative Lifestyle Optimization (PLO) as a practical, lifestyle medicine–informed framework that complements and extends ERAS rather than replacing it. Grounded in the 7 pillars of lifestyle medicine, PLO provides a shared language to support interdisciplinary collaboration across surgery, anesthesiology, lifestyle medicine, health coaching, and system-based care.

Led by surgeon leaders Michael Suk and Brooke Buckley, the session translates perioperative care into accessible, clinically relevant lifestyle medicine principles. Participants will explore how nutrition, physical activity, sleep, stress management, social connection, avoidance of risky substances, and behavior change directly influence inflammation, wound healing, pain, cognition, functional recovery, and overall surgical resilience.

Rather than focusing on technical surgical protocols, the session reframes surgery as a high-impact opportunity for lifestyle intervention. PLO is presented as a bridge that aligns upstream preparedness, in-hospital optimization, and downstream recovery into a more continuous, patient-centered journey.

Key takeaways emphasize that ERAS optimizes inpatient care, perioperative lifestyle optimization strengthens readiness before surgery, and lifestyle medicine sustains recovery and long-term health behaviors after discharge. Through clinical examples and practical framing, participants will gain insight into how this approach can enhance existing perioperative pathways, improve patient experience, and reduce fragmentation of care, while opening new opportunities for collaboration, quality improvement, and research.