Tee?

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RayinSF

RayinSF

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 9, 2004
Messages
56
Location
San Francisco
Hello all,

Well as my date gets closer and closer, {July 12th} I am finding myself here alot more. Thanks to this site, I am ready for surgery. I do however have a question about the TEE procedure. I thought it would be no big deal, but the cardio asst. I takled to today said I should expect some discomfort. Can anyone give me some insight as to what to expect?? Thanks so much!

~Ray

Aortic Stenosis
July 12th, 2004
UCSF
 
Tee

Tee

Ray
I'm probably the worst person to give you insight on this TEE subject but if your anything like me, I had to reschedule the TEE to be done on the day of surgery while under anesthesia. My reason being is that when I made my first attempt to do it like most normal people, the nurse sprayed the back of my throat with a numbing agent, and then tried to insert the scope down my throat and I gagged and pulled it out. I think I am a little more dramatic than most people but to me I couldn't handle the gagging. If your surgeon already gave you a surgery date why don't you ask him if he could do the TEE while your out cold just prior to your surgery so you won't even know what's going on. I do know other people who have had the TEE done without any numbing and made it through just fine, they said they experienced mild discomfort and a scratchy feeling in the back of their throat. So as you can see everyone's experience differs. Do what makes you most comfortable. Best of luck to you.
Dawn
 
I had mine during surgery when I was out. It's eight weeks,and I still don't have my voice strength all the way back. Of course, the other tube was in there at the same time, so that may have been part of it.

I have read from others who've had no problems. Someone will show up with good things to say soon.

The surgeons do seem to think they're highly accurate, and use them to recheck their work before they close up.

Best wishes,
 
My cardio kept pushing the TEE before doing anything else. But my surgeon said he had everything he needed from the echo, and I only had a cath because I'm over 40 and they wanted to check my arteries before the surgery. From what I understand, if they pre-medicate you so you're in la la land the TEE is pretty tolerable, but I can't speak from experience. Like the others I had one in the OR, but I think that's standard procedure and you will be totally unaware of it.
 
I have had 3

I have had 3

I have had 3 TEE's they sprayed my throat alot to numb it and believe me it is numb, to the point it was hard for me to swallow. Although they gave me dimeral and vercet to help relax me you are not out when they put the tube in your throat due to the fact they said I had to help by swallowing it and I gagged and gagged till I had tears and blood blisters on my temples. My gag reflexes work very well they are sensitive. I soon passed out after the tube was in place but as soon as they start wiggling it I woke back up. It is not my favorite test but it did not scare me for life. You will be fine. just keep yourself focused and relaxed. It will be fine I promise.
 
Mine was about the same as above. It's not a favorite procedure, but tolerable. You just have to hang in there the first few seconds until the meds kick in, then you'll be fine until its over. I had a sore throat for a couple of days afterwards. First day I thought I was going to go nuts it hurt so bad, but that's not typical.

If you can get them to wait until surgery, by all means do.
 
I've had several upper endoscopies (looking at esophagus / stomach and two TEE's. The throat numbing stuff tastes pretty YUCKY but is necessary to suppress the gag reflex. Just swallow as instructed. For some, this is not sufficient to prevent gagging and extra VERSED is needed to place you into a deeper subsconsious state. Demerol is used to lessen the 'discomfort'. With sufficient Versed you will NOT remember anything of the procedure. My doc puts me into subconsciousness before inserting the probe and I've not had any unpleasant after effects, just a slightly sore throat for a day or so.

Just remember, the pictures from a TEE are MUCH better than a normal Echo. The alternative is a heart catheterization (which for most people is not a bad experience either).

'AL'
 
~Thank You so much for your responses! I was told yesterday that a TEE will not be necessary. I am having an angiogram done on Thurs {10th} a final standard echo done on the 26th, and then some pre-op tests on July 7th. Im pretty ok with everything so far, and am more anxious then anything else. I wasnt really too worried about the TEE until the guy made a point to tell me how uncomfortable it was going to be. I think I'll be quite relieved when all this pre-op stuff is done, and all thats left is to show up at the hospital :) Anyways, thanks again!
~Ray

Aortic Stenosis
July 12th, 2004
UCSF
 
Ray,
I'm glad you're not going to have the TEE done. I have not undergone one, but my husband, who is frequently with patients during the test, told me that it is not uncommon to have to stop the procedure. Some patients just can't handle it.
I know that I am cynical when it comes to medical procedures, but it's due to a lifetime of exposure to the field of medicine. My father was a doctor, my father- in-law is a pharmacist, my mother and sister are RNs, my husband is a cardiopulmonary therapist. I have heard horror stories all my life. :eek:
My former cardiologist wanted me to undergo a TEE even though I told him I didn't think I could successfully swallow the tube. He replied that he thought that if I ". . . gave him my word, that I could do it and not let him down". Well, bull hockey. This isn't an ethical issue! I give myself credit for knowing my limitations and being able to verbalize them.
Long and short of it was my husband said, "If you don't want to do it, don't do it." So I didn't.
Funny thing is, the new cardiologist, who had been in practice with my former one, told me on the first visit that he thought a TEE was unnecessary. :cool: I still think the first doctor saw it as an opportunity to log another procedure and get paid a pretty penny for doing so.
As I said, I'm cynical! :rolleyes
Mary
 
Mary, your rationalizations against the TEE sound FEAR based to me. With enough Versed and Demerol, you won't feel or remember a thing!

I've had two TEEs pre-surgery with NO problems, and the results correlated with my cath MUCH better than the conventional echo. Speaking of COSTS, a Cath / angiogram costs a WHOLE LOT MORE than a TEE.

'AL'
 
Yes, Al, my feelings are fear based. I do not react well to the medications they use to sedate during a TEE. It is well documented.
If I absolutely had to have a TEE, I would. However, the cardiologist told me if the TEE corresponded to the results I had with the echo, I would still have to have a cath.

So, it was have a TEE, maybe a cath
or
Have a cath (which I have had before with minimal discomfort and little meds)

I opted for the cath. I have double insurance coverage, so my cost wasn't what I referred to in the post. I was talking about the doctor's. If the cardiologist had done the TEE, he would have received significant compensation for it and the heart cath if it had been necessary.
Around the hospital, it was common knowledge that the physician was leaving his practice to return to Arizona due to an inability to sell the house he had left two years previously. He made no bones about it. It was a financial decision. With my double insurance coverage, I do believe that I am sometimes looked upon as a gold mine of opportunity for extra procedures. Many associated, physician based practices put a great deal of pressure on the doctors to produce revenue for the entire group.
But that is a subject for a different thread. :)

Mary
 
AH, OK Mary, I can understand for your specific case, your arguments have merit, on both accounts.

I'm sending you a private message with another observatrion.

'AL'
 
A few points. the regular TEE is not the same as the TEE in OHS. The OHS TEE is a mini one as it has to fit in with the respirator. You can?t hardly feel the mini one before you go under in OHS
I don't follow the discussion here about either TEE or Cath. The cath examines coronary arteries.. Neither the Echo or TEE can see the coronary arteries. The cath and TEE ARE NOT interchangeable for diagnosis...they are compliments and look at different aspects of the heart.
I had had four TEEs in the years leading up to pre-op as they give a better view than the regular echo. Now I am back on regular echoes post op.
The TEE is really not that bad they do give you drugs to relax and you do forget the procedure. There is always a cardiologist doing the exam not a tech. Having a MD there is very comforting and all the ones I had were excellent. They spray your mouth to numb it and then spray to stop the gag reaction. It is not much worse than having a filling at the dentist you just have a tube down your throat for a while and you just feels some pressure. You really don?t have pain or gagging The doc advises you that if you have problems they will stop. I never had a problem. In the scheme or having heart valve disease and OHS it is a relatively minor inconvenience and an excellent diagnostic tool.
 
Tee

Tee

I've had two TEE's,the first one I was awake the whole time and remember everthing. Keep swallowing,were almost done, and your wife is in the waiting room. The second they gave me the gel to swallow and sprayed the spray twice,than the doctor was late.They had to spray again when I told them I didn't think it was working. I remember laying on my side with the plastic ring in my teeth thinking this isn't working. Don't remember a thing! I do remember my chest hurting and burnt where they stopped and started my heart twice at full amps with the paddles,were trying to get my heart out of a fib. Gordie
 
James Haldorson wrote:

"I don't follow the discussion here about either TEE or Cath. The cath examines coronary arteries.. Neither the Echo or TEE can see the coronary arteries. The cath and TEE ARE NOT interchangeable for diagnosis...they are compliments and look at different aspects of the heart."

Actually, they can diagonose BOTH Coronary Arteries AND Valves during a Heart Catheterization. I know they can measure pressure on each side of the valve, maybe other parameters as well. I'm not sure how they arrive at velocities and valve areas. I suspect it is through a calculation based on Fluid Dynamics principles. I believe they can also determine Ejection Fraction from a cath. I'll have to go check my cath reports to clarify the measurements.

'AL'
 
I think the TEE is different for everyone.... When I had my TEE i was a little out of it but came to after the camera was in and just remember trying to grab it out.. the only uncomfortable feeling is knowing htere is something in yoru throat that you cant take out... my TEE specialist was horrid ... not very sympathetic.. so it just matters how the person who does it is.. the thraot spray made me gag a little cuz of the taste... Good luck with yours.

Jaque
 
gag order

gag order

My TEE was a little unpleasant, I was OK initially but started to gag when ever the doc started to move the camera around. My cardio had first told me that I had to have a TEE and I would need to swallow a camera, I didn't understand that it was connected to a 1/2" cable until I arrived at the cardio ward. I think a little more of the spray may have helped. I was also groggy from the seadtive and fell asleep in the wating room after the TEE for about 1/2 an hour. It was no picnic but nothing to be afraid of either.
 
I agree that the TEE is different for everyone. It depends on the patient and on the Dr who is doing it. In my case I the medications did not put in la la land, but they did relax me and I was totally awake during the procedure. My Dr explained everything to me and was very good at doing the procedure. I found it very interesting. I was glad I had the procedure because that was how they discovered my aortic aneurysm.
Kathy H
 
Tee

Tee

For my TEE I only had a bit of valium, but it was only a bit uncomfortable. I understood it was quite important and figuratively grit my teeth and did my best. The throat spray helped quite a bit. Hard to predict how any one individual might react.
 
I had a TEE several years before my valve replacement. They gave me enough versed to catapult me into a highly relaxed state of consciousness. The spray they use to numb your throat is awful; however, it's not bad after you swallow. It does taste terrible. Mine was supposed to be banana flavored but it didn't taste anything like a banana. The only way I can describe it is that it tastes just like bug spray smells! I don't remember the procedure. Good drugs :D
 
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