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Avatar universal

newbie, just had surgery

I fell on cement at the Colorado Springs flea market on September 29.  I was transported to Memorial Hospital where I was diagnosed with facial fractures etc.  I was CAT scanned for brain bleed, which was negative. Two weeks later my PC told me I had a macradoma on the pituatary.  I live in a very remote area of Colorado.  I was referred to surgeons in Colorado Springs and after blood tests, MRIs, consultations, etc, I was scheduled for transphenoidal removal along with some septoplasty to make the pitituatary more accessible.  I got into the OR and sedated and the work was progressing, when they discovered I had a serious infection in a sinus.  The finished up what they could do on the septum, etc, woke me up and sent me home with Mega antibiotics.  Four weeks later, I returned and completed the surgery on February 27.  I was in surgery 5 and a half hours.  Most of the tumor was removed.  I went to the ICU for 30 hours - I was having trouble keeping my sat level, potassium level and sodium level high enough.  Then I was transferred to a highcare unit where I had some problems with excess urination which settled itself within 16 hours. On Sunday evening, I was discharged with antibiotic, pain meds, and. ZoFram. I stayed at a hotel for a day and a night and drove the 3 1/2 hours home. Here's my questions:  I don't feel terrible just "not good".  Have 4 - 5 sinus and facial pain, miserable with the splints in my nostrils, nausea from the extremely dry mouth caused by constant mouth breathing, lots of anxiety.  I can't sleep very well because of the nose thing..
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Avatar universal
Your surgeon MAY OR MAY NOT allow the sinus rinse so ask before you use it. Since you had an infection, you have to be very careful.

You may be able to use steam. Use a clean bowl of salted water and a towel. heat the water and a towel. Chew sugarless gum for the dry mouth - it helps. It can also help with the facial pain as it kind of helps loosen the sinuses the bit.

You just had a major surgery - so you have to recovery. There is surgical recovery which will take about a month - then hormonal which can take a lot longer. Don't bend over or use a straw. You may need more sodium than you used to need due to the HC usage, and keep your fluid usage up, and don't wash out all your electrolytes.

I slept in a lazy-boy to help.
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Avatar universal
Hi, grammabee,
It is normal after pituitary surgery to be on hydrocortisone tablets, twice a day for some time after the operation. This is because if you don't already have a cortisol deficiency as a result of the tumour, there is a chance that it may start after the surgery. Later, they conduct blood tests to ensure that you can produce cortisol. I strongly suggest that you contact your health team endocrinologist as soon as possible and ask them about this. If you are not producing enough cortisol it is life threatening as you can go into adrenal crisis. Please check out the Pituitary Foundation website in the UK for more info.
You should be under the care of a neuro-endocrinologist and you should have been given detailed literature on what to look out for in yyour recovery to ensure that everything is going right for you. With regard to the nasal problems, try Neilmed sinus irrigation which can be bought from a pharmacy. Dan.
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