Leg numbness

[halleyg]

Today is 4 weeks post-op for me. I feel like it's going slow but I'm starting to feel like my energy is increasing little by little.. anyhow, last Friday I got up and my left leg was a little numb, kind of like it was asleep, right by my outer knee. It felt really weird so I finally went walking but that didn't help. Within a couple of hours the numbness went down my leg to my foot. I could still move it, it just felt kind of like it was asleep w/out the pins and needles. I got really worried and called my dr. office, also my brother who is a dr. and was advised to go to the ER. I had some tests done there including a cat scan but everything came back negative, which is great, but all the dr. said it that it was not related to the OHS and if it didn't get better to see a neurologist. I have had a numb spot on my left hand between my thumb and forefinger since the surgery so I thought it could be related. The ER dr. said this coudln't be blamed on the surgery since it happened three weeks later. Anyhow, the numbness went away by the next morning but there have been a couple times where my leg feels a little numb, just not as bad as that day. I was just wondering what you guys thought of this.

 

[WayneGM]

I'm not sure what it is but 4 weeks is still pretty early post-op so my advice is when it doubt, get it checked out.

 

[Freddie]

Try going to a massage therapist. I did at 4 wks post-op. Not for numb leg mind you, but she worked on everything and it felt wonderful. It could be a pinched nerve that needs to be worked out.
Best of Luck

 

[Ambience]

I remember that blood circulation was checked frequently when I was in the hospital after surgery. If you remember where they checked your pulse a little behind your ankle above the heel of your foot, you may want to check to see if you have a healthy heartbeat there. Did your leg discolor, get cold as well as numb? Could be circulation issues and worth checking out. But chances are it's just a pinched nerve as mentioned above.

 

[Cooker]

Try going to a massage therapist. I did at 4 wks post-op. Not for numb leg mind you, but she worked on everything and it felt wonderful. It could be a pinched nerve that needs to be worked out.
Best of Luck

I fully recomend the massage therapist

 

[halleyg]

Thanks all for the advice. A massage sounds wonderful but I can't imagine laying on my stomach since my sternum is sore... how long did you wait? I went to my chiropractor yesterday and she recommended the same, said I have a bunch of knots (I have a bad back anyways, scoliosis, so laying around the past month hasn't helped). I also wondered about the ciruculation since my leg was cold at the time it went numb, but didn't stay cold and didn't change color.

 

[Cooker]

I would wait until you are comfortable in any position. Although if you just want your legs massaged then I would call and ask the therapist. Many of them come to you. Good luck.

 

[Bina]

Halley, I don't think you have to take the full body massage lying on your stomach...I believe you could ask for "legs only" and be lying on your back or sitting in a lazy boy type of chair....physiotherapists are very good for these types of specific treatments.

 

[imhayley]

Hi Halley. I went to a massage therapist for a year after surgery. I had problems with my left groin area. I was in constant pain and couldn't get it to go away. The chiropractor also worked on me a bit. Anyhoo I was miserable for over a year and couldn't hardly walk. I had an MRI, x-rays, the full meal deal and it showed nothing. Of course I just got crazier as the pain continued with NO answers. My massage therapist (Frank...cute too....bonus! worked on me every single week for an hour and what he said was while I was healing I walked slumped in, shoulders in, not standing tall and opening up that chest area to heal the scar tissue properly. He also had me do stretches of my shoulders. He also said when the surgeon brings your arms back down to your side position when he's done operating this can cause a muscle pull. Your arms are spread quite wide during the operation. A lot of those muscles are connected and once I started to stand straight and hold my shoulders back I felt relief in my leg. So.....I was completely healed by my awesome massage therapist and now am able to walk every morning again. Hope that helps a little. Good luck!

 

[AJ Golf]

Me too.

Me too.

Actually, after my heart a couple weeks before surgery, I felt the numbing, coldness in my left thigh and the cardio said it's no big deal. I mentioned to the surgeon before the surgery, he stated the same. After the AVR surgery, it happened again, only for a short while. Everyone tells me it's nothing and the tests up to this point confirm that.