Sternum still snapping after 6 weeks???

[Garagegym]

I am reaching out to the community for help. I had my open heart surgery just over 6 weeks ago. The hospital I picked in the US ( a good one but one I could afford ) did not offer any kind of sternal clamps or glue and just used the wire to put me back together. I have a quite a large chest and I thought I was finally getting my sternum to heal until last night when I reached around my back to scratch with my left arm and heard a large solid feeling snap. This is different sounding snaps that my costochondral joints seem to emit. Interestingly my left side chest started healing right away but my right side chest felt numb and doesn't seem to be healing as fast ( with a noticeable dent in the middle of the border--rib spreader damage??)

Is this normal????- I thought at 6 weeks the sternum was about 65 percent healed and some of the restrictions are to come off. My cardiologist is sending me for another x-ray today to look see--I am pretty sure I just set myself back about 4 weeks of healing by the way everything is popping today-- DARN-- if glue or sternal clamps are available why do surgeons not use it ??? it would make healing so much easier!!!

Can people give me an idea of their experiences with this-- I looked at a lot of old posts and seemed to be all very diverse but something just doesn't feel right.

How long before I can just start living my life again unrestricted??????

 

[Hank]

Hi there.. I am 14 years post op. I was wired together as well. My first impression is that this is completely normal and exactly what I experienced. I remember popping sensations for up to a year when I would sneeze or twist or some other upper body strain.

I remember going to the Dr a few times because I was concerned and was always told it was normal. Until I was sure it wasn't an issue, I was freaked out by it. This passed and I believe the Dr's were correct that it wasn't an issue.

My experience = Normal and it will pass

My advice = ALWAYS get it checked out by a professional if YOU have any concerns.

 

[Garagegym]

Thanks Hank. Much appreciated.

 

[bw00]

I think it's normal! I had that as well! Now, 5 moths post-op it's completely gone .

 

[Dan Zulu]

My sternum was re-aligned with steel cable, but no clamps. The soft tissue layers were sutured and the skin glued. I would guess your chest was closed in a very similar fashion. Hopefully the x-Ray shows a steadily healing joint and you can relax.

 

[epstns]

I'm another member of the "wired" generation - my sternum was wired back together. I've seen the x-rays, and the work is worthy of a trophy - almost looks like a laced-up boot. Even now, at 3 1/2 years out, I occasionally have a slight "pop" but no pain. I figure that as long as nobody else hears it, I can just ignore it. I'm sure (in my case) the bone is not moving, so I write the popping off to cartilage noises and carry on.