Another surgery scheduled - remove sternal wires

[mainframe]

For last few months I've had what my primary doc called a "granulation" which has been an open wound at the incision site of my AVR. Seems a couple of sternal wires are causing this and I scheduled surgery on July 8th to remove a couple of them. It's considered a day surgery so I should go home later that day but my track record for going home when expected is less than fantastic. They do want to bridge my Coumadin by using Lovenex 5 days before and after until back in to therapeutic range.

Anybody else have this done?

 

[nngbwh]

Not me. Don't jinx yourself!. Hopefully you should be in and out of the hospital this time.

Thanks for the update.

 

[heartman77]

Mainframe...best of wishes for a fast speedy recovery after removal of those problematic wires.......I hope you are comfortable and back on the recovery road after the procedure....Mike

 

[Bina]

We have several members who have had some (or all) of their wires removed for various reasons.
I've got at least 2 that need to come out, they are protruding and annoying.

 

[Ross]

For last few months I've had what my primary doc called a "granulation" which has been an open wound at the incision site of my AVR. Seems a couple of sternal wires are causing this and I scheduled surgery on July 8th to remove a couple of them. It's considered a day surgery so I should go home later that day but my track record for going home when expected is less than fantastic. They do want to bridge my Coumadin by using Lovenex 5 days before and after until back in to therapeutic range.

Anybody else have this done?

Yes. Start bridging when INR hits 2.0 and continue until 12 hours before surgery. MY SUGGESTION----Don't bridge afterwards, just start the Coumadin back up. I know they're going to to do both, but what they fail to understand is, Lovenox causes far more bleeding then Coumadin could ever hope too.

 

[daveguy14]

Five weeks post-op I have an open wound problem that is being treated and allowed to heal on its own. How was it determined your wires were causing the problem?

 

[Bina]

Five weeks post-op I have an open wound problem that is being treated and allowed to heal on its own. How was it determined your wires were causing the problem?

I had that same thing for several weeks post op; needed a home nurse twice a week for wound care, but I don't think that it was the wires specifically. My skin was very thin and fragile, very slow healing.

 

[buncle]

You have had much more than your share of tough times. This on will go smooth and as planned!

 

[ottagal]

Gee...sorry to hear that you have to go back in to have the wires out.
I will be praying that it is uneventful and quick. Keeping fingers and toes crossed.

 

[Cris N]

Hope this solves the problem for you.

 

[mainframe]

This has been going on for 3 - 4 months now. The doctor had an x-ray done with a marker of where the wound was and he said based on that the cause was the wires. My first wound seemed to ooze a fair amount of milky colored stuff and as it got close to healing, a second wound started forming right below. At first, the second wound plumped up probably from the drainage from the first wound and finally the skin opened up. The second wound has gotten smaller but the doctor told me the first wound could open back up at any time. The texture of skin is now different where I've had the big bandaid on my chest for a few months. Can't wait to not have to wear one.

 

[james]

Where are you getting this done?

 

[Lynlw]

This has been going on for 3 - 4 months now. The doctor had an x-ray done with a marker of where the wound was and he said based on that the cause was the wires. My first wound seemed to ooze a fair amount of milky colored stuff and as it got close to healing, a second wound started forming right below. At first, the second wound plumped up probably from the drainage from the first wound and finally the skin opened up. The second wound has gotten smaller but the doctor told me the first wound could open back up at any time. The texture of skin is now different where I've had the big bandaid on my chest for a few months. Can't wait to not have to wear one.

I know a girl that had the same problem,with her wound reopening and the granulation (for over a year) hers tracked back to old pacer wires. Justin had the sternal infection,that oozed 10 days post op a couple years ago. This january he had a spot that blisterred them oozed and was put on antibiotics and surgery was schedualled. The antibioitcs cleared it up and since his chest has been opened so many times, they decided at the last min, (literally after 5 hours in prop with IVs) not to operate, in hopes it is gone, but chances are it may happen again then they will operate.
I don't know if it is the same surgery, but how it was explained for Justin's (and the little girl with the wound that kept opening) was they were going to shoot a special blue dye in that tracks back to all the areas that are causing the problem and that is how they would know what needed to be removed. Justin only has 1 sternal wire (at the very top) because all of the other ones had to be removed during the surgery for the infection, They were concerned in his case, the blue dye might track back to his old pacemaker wires too, but the hope was it was just the sternal wire he had left.

 

[Bill B]

Sorry to hear this, Chris. Let's expect a good result quickly this time.

My wound is a bit strange, but has not opened up. However, the lower half is raised, red, itches and swells in the daytime. Top half looks wonderful.

I'll be in touch before the surgery.

Bill

 

[Mentu]

Chris, I find myself wondering why your Doctor is not planning on removing all of the remaining wires to avoid any possibility of this in the future. After your other experiences, I do hope this goes well and will be thinking of you. Take care.

Larry

 

[mainframe]

Where are you getting this done?

I'm a Group Health member/employee so either the GH facitily in Bellevue or Overlake Hospital next door. A GH general surgeon is doing the surgery. Really shouldn't be a big deal.

Lyn, we just did an Xray. Hopefully it is the sternal wires or its back to the drawing board.

Look forward to chatting Bill.

 

[Philip B]

Snip... snip

Snip... snip

A few snips here... a few snips there and you'll be as good as new. This one should be pretty easy compared to the one that required wires in the first place.

-Philip

 

[Lynlw]

I'm a Group Health member/employee so either the GH facitily in Bellevue or Overlake Hospital next door. A GH general surgeon is doing the surgery. Really shouldn't be a big deal.

Lyn, we just did an Xray. Hopefully it is the sternal wires or its back to the drawing board.

Look forward to chatting Bill.

They didn't do other testing, for the surgery Justin almost had in Jan, they said they wouldn't know until surgery, and they shot the dye in. Hopefully it would just have been the wires, but all the consent form gave permission to a pretty big surgery. I know for the little girl, they were told the same things and the blue dye tracked back to her old pacemaker wires. I don't know if they use the blue dye test in the OR at all hospitals tho.

 

[LisaD]

I had all of my sternal wires removed 6 months ago. It was a quick procedure, I was only in the hospital for half a day. I was pretty sore for a week or so, but felt better than I had with them in place. I had a mitral valve repair and am not on coumadin. I had mine removed due to problems with pain, and I am so thin they were nearly poking through my skin. I had all the wires removed since I did not want to find that the others might cause problems in the future and have to go in again. They had to open up most of my scar to get them out and it was very swollen for a couple of weeks, but seemed to heal pretty quickly.

 

[Luana]

Wishing you all the best for a most uneventful procedure.