Question Title: paralysis of the diaphragm

i was told that i have partial paralysis of the diaphragm, resulting from a mammary vein transplant for a heart by- pass. have there been many cases of this if so what is the out look for improvement the surgury was done on 05-15 -98. i have shortness of breath and dont sleep to long before i have to get up and take some deep breaths.any info on this would be helpful. thank you.

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Partial paralysis of the diaphragm is a relatively common complication
of heart surgery, it usually only effects one side of the diaphragm
and may not even completely paralyse that side.
The outcome of the problem depeds totally on the degree of damage in the
initial injury.
If the nerve concerned (the phrenic nerve ) was completely severed the
chances of recovery are very poor, if it was only temporarily damaged
substantial recovery can be expected. I cannot predict the possible extent
of recovery in your individual case as I have no idea of the extent of the
origional injury to the nerve.
In general the majority of people who have this complication have a very
good recovery, however a substantial minority have ongoing problems.
If you have not noticed any recovery at this stage you should see a
pulmonologist to be evaluated as there is a possibility that the oxygen
levels in your blood are falling to very low levels during sleep which
places a strain on your heart.

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