My surgery is this Friday & I got questions

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CrackerJ

New member
Joined
Mar 23, 2010
Messages
2
Location
Asheville, NC
Hello, I have surgery on Friday to replace my descending aorta and to fix a leaky valve. I am having it done at the Heart Tower at Mission Hospital in Asheville, NC by Dr. Groh. I am 47 and in decent health. The problem was discovered when I had a mild heart attack on Dec 23rd. They could not find a cause for the attack except stress and some high blood pressure, no blockage, but they did find my aorta was about 6CM or almost twice as big as it should be. It could be Marfins Syndrome, I have many of the signs of that. At any rate I have a few questions if anyone would be so nice as to help me with.

1. What should I expect as far as recovery. How long? what will the first and second week be like?

2. - What last minute things should I do? such as power of attorney, organ donor etc...

3. - It seems in my research that pneumonia, paralysis or brain damage are three possible complications with this surgery. Has anyone found this to have been the case

4. - What should I do in advance to prepare my home for recovery and to be comfortable.

5. - Can I eat what I want to eat on Wednesday night before the Friday surgery. I like spicy foods and my guess is nothing is going to taste good to me for awhile after surgery but I do not want to eat something that may cost me in the OR.

I do appreciate your time and keep me in your prayers. Thanks Again, John Jordan
 
Hi, John I didn't have heart surgery, but my 21 year old son had several and my mom 2. To answer alot of your questions, I would start with the stickies at the top of this ( the preop forum) http://www.valvereplacement.org/forums/showthread.php?13283-what-to-take-to-the-hospital-a-checklist and http://www.valvereplacement.org/for...How-to-prepare-a-house-for-homecoming-patient at the top of the post op forums.
actually the stickies at the top of the various forums has alot of good info in one place

Complications, there are all kinds of complications you can have both big ones and smaller "bumps" besides experience with my son and Mom (who both had several complications very major and minor) I've been on boards for about a decade and don't remeber anyone becoming paralyzed. Brain damage can occur but THAT is very very rare.
As for pnuemonia, that is more common and sometimes it can't be helped BUT you can help prevent it by doing any breathing excercises you are given several times thru out the day, walking (It will be short across the room walkas at first and work up to laps around the floor, a couple times a day. Justins has had several surgeries that he remebers (the 1st 2 he was too young) and he truly believes the more effort he puts into it the quicker he gets home and does well.
Some times there is nothing you can do to prevent complications, but for the most part even if you have major coomplications, need more surgery ect it may take much longer to recover, but you will.
Pay alot of attention to your body,especially when you get home, if anything seems to be wrong, temps, SOB ect call your doctor, usually the quicker they are caught the better.
 
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Hello and welcome,
1) recovery varies greatly, but you should do fine.
2) some ppl update their Will, POA, etc. (I just told my daughter where I hide the jewelry.LOL)
3) most of us have some kind of little bumps in recovery (mine was tachycardia) modern medicine can handle most anything.
4) we have a "sticky" thread here for post op preparation. There are tons of suggestions.
5) Wednesday would be a good time to have a very tasty meal since Thursday you may want to keep it light.
 
CrackerJ said:
Hello, I have surgery on Friday to replace my descending aorta and to fix a leaky valve. I am having it done at the Heart Tower at Mission Hospital in Asheville, NC by Dr. Groh. I am 47 and in decent health. The problem was discovered when I had a mild heart attack on Dec 23rd. They could not find a cause for the attack except stress and some high blood pressure, no blockage, but they did find my aorta was about 6CM or almost twice as big as it should be. It could be Marfins Syndrome, I have many of the signs of that. At any rate I have a few questions if anyone would be so nice as to help me with.

1. What should I expect as far as recovery. How long? what will the first and second week be like?

2. - What last minute things should I do? such as power of attorney, organ donor etc...

3. - It seems in my research that pneumonia, paralysis or brain damage are three possible complications with this surgery. Has anyone found this to have been the case

4. - What should I do in advance to prepare my home for recovery and to be comfortable.

5. - Can I eat what I want to eat on Wednesday night before the Friday surgery. I like spicy foods and my guess is nothing is going to taste good to me for awhile after surgery but I do not want to eat something that may cost me in the OR.

I do appreciate your time and keep me in your prayers. Thanks Again, John Jordan
Click to expand...

1. 6 months to a year for full recovery. First week sucks. You won't like it. Second still sucks, but it's better then the first. First 3 days are the worst.
2. Sounds like you have the bases covered on this one.
3. Anything is possible, including death, but 97% of the people come out fine. Just don't fall into the 3% gap.
4. See the sticky at the top of this forum for home prep.
5. Pig out on whatever you like up to the 2 days before surgery. The night before, keep it lite. Most of us threw up after surgery and that's no fun.

Do you have a back up plan in case your valve cannot be repaired?
 
Surgery this MONDAY

Surgery this MONDAY

John, I have my surgery Monday, Mar 29th and will have a valve replacement and a double bypass. I will be in a better position to answer your questions once I get home following surgery. Hopefully I won't be in Hospital for more than 5 days, and I can get back on the computer. I pulled out my will and power of attorney, along with some cash that I had stored away and prepared a list of passwords, accounts etc for on line banking. In short, prepared all of my financial documents for my wife. (Actually I went over this with my son and he will pass it on to her if necessary). I have some freinds who have undergone this surgery, with NO complications. I hear a lot of people talk about a recliner for sleeping when they get home. Personally this is not for me as I now must use my arms to lift myself out of the relciner, something that will not be possible following surgery. The nurses at the Heart Institute have instructed me on how to get out of bed so that you don't push with your arms and I have been practicing this along with deep breathing exercises. Following my pre-op meeting with the hospital staff, I was told to eat drink whatever I wanted before surgery. As I am scheduled for a 0600 hrs appt, I am not to eat or drink after Midnight, the previous day. So I plan to go out for dinner on Saturday. Remain confident and God Bless - Gord
 
1. What should I expect as far as recovery. How long? what will the first and second week be like? That depends on your body. You won't be doing handsprings or even driving at two weeks, though. Hopefully, you'll be walking a mile or more by then.

2. - What last minute things should I do? such as power of attorney, organ donor etc... You can do those things, although you'll likely feel silly afterwards. They're good to have done for later in life, though. I just let go of the controls for the cath and surgery. Afterwards, I watch everything like a hawk.

3. - It seems in my research that pneumonia, paralysis or brain damage are three possible complications with this surgery. Has anyone found this to have been the case You do need to breathe afterwards. Your lungs are collapsed during surgery and need to "fluff up" again. Paralysis is unlikely unless you suffer a stroke, which is not common, but which I have no figures for. I've been through this surgery twice and never had any dain bramage...

4. - What should I do in advance to prepare my home for recovery and to be comfortable. A lounge chair is a great thing for recovery. TV as well, because you may be a little groggy for reading while still on painkillers. If you're a milk drinker, get quarts or half gallons. A gallon is 8 lbs (liquids: "a pint is a pound"), and you shouldn't lift over 5 lbs for a couple of weeks or more.

5. - Can I eat what I want to eat on Wednesday night before the Friday surgery. I like spicy foods and my guess is nothing is going to taste good to me for awhile after surgery but I do not want to eat something that may cost me in the OR. The only thing I would warn you about spicy foods is if you're prone to heartburn. If you are, that might not be good, as you'll be lying down, with tubes in your throat. I'm not aware of any prohibition though.

You'll be in my thoughts on Friday.

Best wishes,
 
Just wanted to wish you well, as you see you will get a wealth of knowledge from here. Every recovery is different. We will see you on the other side of the mountain!
Godspeed...
 
Hey CrakerJ.

I don't have anything to add about your specific questions that has not been addressed by several of our group above. I would just add that it might be helpful to pop over to the post-op forum to see how things are going for those of us who are recently post op. You can get a feel of the small bumps in the road that most of us have experienced.

You will be in our thoughts and prayers. Please let us know how it goes.
 
I can't add to the good advice already posted, but want to wish you a successful surgery and smooth recovery. Be sure to let us know how you're doing afterward!
 
All the advice given is sound advice. I was asking the same questions 2 weeks ago. I am one week and one day post op. As far as eating goes they told me to anything I wanted the night before surgery but nothing after midnight. As far as recovery mine has been ok. The only complaint I have is the coughing. Coughing hurts like hell. Cant describe the pain but its bad. I tore a chest muscle coughing on day 6 and it has slowed me down. I am able to walk about 22 min twice a day.

The best advice I can give you is take your pain meds even when you feel good. Once it gets out of your system it takes awhile to get back in. And keep your cough pillow at arms reach at all times.

You are in my prayers, look forward to hearing from you post op.

Bryan
 
I really cannot think of anything to add, other than to say I also wish you a safe trip over the mountain to the easier downslope! Maybe sharing some of my story will help you? I had aortic stenosis diagnosed in 2005 but due to some valid and some not so important reasons, did not get around to doing anything more about it. Fast forward to 2009, I was increasingly short of breath, had to raise head on second pillow to sleep, almost fainted walking the dogs, etc. I had my aortic valve replaced (and repair was done to Tricuspid, I forgot to ask why, was so focused on the aortic thing), on Jan 14. Tomorrow is my 10 week anniversary and I feel so great, if someone had told me in 2005 how much better I would feel, I would not have put it off.

In terms of timeline on recovery, everyone varies. I was walking very soon, and that is important. Both due to the pre-existing disease process that likely resulted in lowered muscle activity, and being bedridden for a day or two depending on how long your surgery is and when they extubate you (take out ventilator tube), there will be some muscle weakness the first time or two you walk. Not to worry though, there will be nurses who specialize in cardiac rehab exercise who will supervise and assist. As Ross said, although complications can occur, they are rare. I am just so delighted to have my life/energy back, I can only say that I am thrilled to have a new lease on life. Keep us posted!

I forgot to mention, they most likely will give you a little pillow, oftentimes it is a cute little heart shaped pillow. Use as directed, seriously! It is not something wimpy, it is a smart thing, if your procedure is such that sternotomy is done. Many procedures now can be done in what they call minimally invasive ways, but a sternotomy is something cardiac surgeons have a lot of experience in. Do ask if you can have the exterior, skin part of the incision closed with glue, as that speeds healing. I have wires inside and had glue outside, and had and have very little pain from the incision.
 
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Questions

Questions

1. What should I expect as far as recovery. How long? what will the first and second week be like?

As others have noted, recovery is really an individual thing. Much depends on what kind of shape you're in. Personally, my recovery was pretty easy. The first week wasn't bad at all. I only took five days off work (most of that was the time I spent in the hospital). I was placed in a cardiac rehab program at two weeks post-op (they wanted to slow me down). At six weeks, I was pretty much back to doing everything I was doing before surgery. Yeah, that's probably not the norm, but it was my experience.

2. - What last minute things should I do? such as power of attorney, organ donor etc...

The power of attorney thing is a good idea anytime you're having surgery. There's a tendancy for OHS patients to focus on the "dark side" of possible outcomes. It's not a bad thing to make sure your will is in order. I did some "Just in Case" letters and made sure someone outside my family knew where I had the documents stashed. I didn't want family members to get curious and read a bunch of goodbye stuff when I came through surgery okay.

The hospital did all of the DNR and organ donor documents when I was admitted for surgery.

3. - It seems in my research that pneumonia, paralysis or brain damage are three possible complications with this surgery. Has anyone found this to have been the case?

Sure, there have been people who've had major issues following surgery. Keep in mind, over 95% of the folks who have AVR surgery do okay. Many of the 5% who have problems have health issues that
promote complications. Heart surgery and many of the procedures that involve the heart present some level of risk. Many, many years ago when I had my first heart cath, the guy who shared my hospital room died during his heart cath. Consider the risks of surgery vs. not having the surgery done; the outcome of not having a necessary surgery done is certain.

4. - What should I do in advance to prepare my home for recovery and to be comfortable.

I returned to a home that was relatively unaltered after surgery. I did opt to sleep on a sofa for about six months because it was more comfortable than my bed. Mostly, I wanted to sleep propped-up because I wanted to minimize possible fluid build-up in my lungs. I managed home stuff with no help.

5. - Can I eat what I want to eat on Wednesday night before the Friday surgery. I like spicy foods and my guess is nothing is going to taste good to me for awhile after surgery but I do not want to eat something that may cost me in the OR.

This is a question best answered by your doctor. Often, the hospital will provide written pre-surgery instructions. These instructions typically outline restrictions on eating and drinking before surgery. Having the desire to eat before surgery is a good thing; I kinda lost the desire to eat much as my surgery got closer.

It's natural to be concerned and worried about OHS. OHS is a big deal. It helped me to stay busy and focused on other things as my surgery date approached. It also helped me to talk to people who were willing to just listen. There's not much anyone who hasn't been through the experience of OHS can say to ease concerns.

-Philip
 
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