Hi Peachy,
Here is a pre-surgery page that I found for you.
About the Surgery.
Before the Surgery:
You will be given a special soap to shower the evening before surgery. This shower is then repeated the following morning after a technician has clipped the hair that needs to be removed for the surgical procedure.
You may have nothing to eat or drink after midnight the day of your surgery.
You will be given a medication to help you relax before the surgery along with an antibiotic.
Personal Articles
Please send personal belongings (clothes, jewelry, wallet, etc.) home with family members.
Anesthesia
Prior to surgery you will talk with your anesthesiologist to discuss their role during your procedure. Your anesthesiologist will carefully evaluate your medical history and inform you of the steps that are involved with their portion of your care.
During the Surgery:
You will be greeted by the Operating Room (O.R.) nurse who will escort you to the O.R. suite for surgery. The immediate preoperative events will be explained by the nurse as they are performed.
After you have been placed under anesthesia and are unconscious, the following will be done:
1. A breathing tube will be inserted through your mouth to deliver further anesthesia and assist your breathing until you are awake.
2. A chest tube is inserted to allow the lungs to re-expand after surgery, and allow for drainage. This tube is generally removed on the second day after surgery, or when drainage becomes minimal.
3. A catheter is inserted into the bladder to drain urine. This is usually removed the day after surgery.
4. A nasogastric tube is placed through the nose into the stomach, and drains stomach contents. This tube is usually removed the day after surgery.
5. Pacemaker wires are inserted at the bottom of your incision. These are usually removed on the first or second day after surgery. Your heart rhythm is continuously monitored.
Then, surgery begins.
After the Surgery:
Immediately after surgery, you will be transferred to the Cardio-thoracic Intensive Care Unit (CITCU). The first several hours is a critical period when your condition is being stabilized. The cardiac surgeon and the CTICU nurse will coordinate your care very closely with the other health
care team members to constantly assess your needs.
Your family will be allowed to visit you in the CTICU as your condition permits. Routine visiting hours will be explained to you or posted outside the CTICU.
Equipment in the CTICU may emit high-pitched "alarms." These sounds are all normal in an intensive care unit.
On the day of your surgery, you will have a nurse continuously at your bedside. You will remain in the CTICU until your breathing tube is removed.
Transfer from CTICU
Heart surgery patients are transferred to a cardio-thoracic nursing unit from the CTICU. The staff on these units specialize in caring for heart surgery patients. They will encourage you to be an active partner in your postoperative care as you progress toward your discharge home.
The usual plan for recovery is outlined in the Patient Recovery Plan.
Use your breathing device 10 times an hour.
As soon as your chest tube is removed, you will be allowed to shower.
Continue this practice every morning at home. Do not use any lotions, creams or powders.
Cardiac Rehabilitation
Cardiac Rehabilitation will help restore you to your former health and abilities.
I went for 3 months and for me it felt really good to be with other patients like myself. I just did it. If I had stayed home I might have chosen some days not to do it.
I wish you well Peach.
Christina
Aortic Stenosis
AVR's 8/7/00 & 8/18/00
St.Jude's Mechanical
Coumadin 20mg a day.
