Sternum pain- how long

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drivetopless

drivetopless

VR.org Supporter
Supporting Member
Joined
Dec 28, 2008
Messages
650
Location
formerly Atlanta, GA.
Hi, folks-
I'm 5 weeks post op today. I had a mini-sternotomy. The incision looks great and is healing nicely.

I'm wondering about your experience with the sternum itself healing.

My sternum feels worse today than it did 2 weeks post op. Maybe it was the anesthesia still in my system at 2 weeks?

There is a general aching in the center of my chest. It still hurts to belly-laugh and cough. Sometimes my collarbone clicks when I lay down and breathe. My back and left rib cage have just now started to ache. I can lay on my right side, but not my left.

How long does the sternum take to fully heal, in your experience?. Does this sound normal to you? I have had a lot of issues with coughing due to fluid retention, which seemed to irritate the sternum/ribs.
 
Hey ...YOU GOT THE GREAT PILLOW USE IT AWHILE LONGER the ache is indicitive of healinhg (that is what I was told they told me a minimum of three months ....sorry Tracy but the longer and more faithful to sternal precautions you keep the better it will heal
 
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Greg, sorry, but I can't figure out "the avhe is indicitive of healinhg". Especially the "the avhe" part.

Drivetopless, I had more weird feelings and irritation than pain from my (fully) cracked "wishbone", apart from coughs and sneezes and maybe a few pushes and pulls with the arms. Esp. when the chest hairs started re-growing, including right out of the incision, and grabbing my shirts ALL the time when I moved in the LEAST -- just in case you want to count your blessings! :) Other than the chest hair, my progress from "weird weak" to "less weird stronger" was pretty continuous, and now at 2.5 months it feels pretty normal and my strength seems pretty normal, too.

I think my whole experience with OHS was way on the painless side of average, and I didn't have any heavy-duty post-op painkillers to get out of my system, either. God knows we're all different in this experience. . .
 
Thanks, guys. No doctors have talked about how the chest should feel while healing. I'll think of it as a "good hurt." And I am really greatful not to have chest hair. Boobies are enough--have to wear a sports bra 24/7 to keep the incision from pulling/stretching :)
 
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To be honest it took me a year before my sternum felt normal. I also, had a minimally invasive sternodomy. After that I would get a twinge here and there. EVERYONE IS DIFFERNT though. I have always been a slow healer. The initial recovery (coughing and sneezing without any discomfort) took me appox 4 mos.
 
I think of this the same as a broken bone. It takes about 6 weeks to heal and a couple-ish years to really be normal.

I notice than the minimally invasive pain was more than the current full incision. With that said, I do not know if it has to do with how tightly the sternum wires are holding it together.

Scott
 
Hey Drive-

I'm a few days past 6 weeks from my surgery and I feel about the same way as you do. I had the full sternotomy though. Some days are better than others. Clicking and popping noises have pretty much stopped. Pain does gradually subside though. Can lay on my left side but right side is still very tender. My back does hurt quite a bit but I think that is from a combination of things such as primarily sleeping on my back which I don't normally do and also from something called guarding (being overly protective of the incision and walking slightly hunched over) which I find myself doing subconciously. When I catch myself doing this I straighten myself out and then the incision stings from being stretched.

Exercise on the treadmill does help quite a bit as far as trying to feel better. I just started rehab and was wiped out after the first day. Coughing and sneezing still hurts. I also still use my chest pillow quite a bit (splinting).

For me time cannot pass quickly enough right now. I'm 6 weeks out and I can hardly wait for another 6 to hurry and pass. Even though everyone is different sounds to me like you are on the right track and as the saying goes.. time heals all.

By the way how is a mini-sternotomy different from the full blown one?
 
wryan said:
Hey Drive-

By the way how is a mini-sternotomy different from the full blown one?
Click to expand...

Thanks again for the input, all.
Re/ mini-sternotomy- my incision is only 2 5/8" long and I believe they only saw a portion of the sternum.
"Mini-Sternotomy for aortic valve replacement incisions are performed through an upper mini-sternotomy, in which an incision is made from the sternal notch to the third intercostal space". This incision is common for isolated first time AVR (no other surgical procedures).

The full sternotomy is a much longer incision and I believe they saw the full length of the sternum.

My incision is pretty painless--the skin around it feels like a bad sunburn when you touch it though. The sternum underneath aches like a mule kicked me there. I also have left armpit and shoulderblade pain when I inhale. The right side is painless for the most part.
 
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Tracy,

I'm also a few days past 6 weeks from my surgery. I just started upper body conditioning at cardio rehab yesterday. Yesterday was the first time in 3 weeks I needed a pain med for my sternum. The most pain comes from sneezing, then coughing, if i have more than one cough, I reach for my pillow. I still sleep in the recliner at night, and if I lay flat on the floor on my back it stretches the scar somewhat( the reason I am still using the recliner). At 6 weeks I just got my driving privilege back, and weight limit jumped to 10 lbs.
It is hard not to over-do, especially with with my dogs getting rougher with me again. I have never heard any clicking and popping noises.

Ron
 
I got my driving back at 41/2 weeks (this week) and I can lift up to 20 lbs. I guess that's because of the mini- vs the full-sternotomy, too. I am able to sleep flat in the bed with no problems as of this week. I slept in a recliner the first 3 weeks, then in a bed propped up on lots of pillows. I can also now lay on my sides for short periods, though the left side is more painful..
 
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The upper 3/4 of my incision/sternum doesn't hurt any more. Its the bottom where that soft sternum area is plus right behind the drain tube holes that still hurts.

I have that sunburned feeling on the right side of the incision also. Clothing rubbing on this area drives me up the wall. I'm told its from nerve endings that are trying to heal. I also have numbness under my right armpit plus the pain I mentioned earlier underneath my ribs when I lay on this side. I'm told there is no telling how long nerve endings take to heal.
 
Hi all.Tommorrow Feb 18 i will be 13 weeks out and my left breast area is numb.There is no sternum pain but there is soreness and pain around the collar bone.I still wake up during the night with pain around collar bone and shoulders and have to take tylenol.
 
I'm six months out from my most recent surgery. I still get an ache in the lower sternum after using the elliptical machine -all that arm motion, I guess, and from putting weight on my arms when I'm not using the arm motion part.

And I STILL get clicks in my rib/spine joint during certain movements.

I guess my nerves are still healing, too. Unless I'm wearing the silicone scar strip under my brassiere, that lower portion of my incision, which is slightly keloid, drives me NUTS! I want that area injected...as soon as work slows down a bit.

I think my shoulder pain finally went away a month ago.
I think the answer is TIME.
 
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