recovery timetable

[MaryRose988]

My mother just had a triple bypass last Monday(1 week ago) I thought she would be walking by now.  
Three days ago when they moved her to the CCU unit, they walked her around the nurses station once
and she has not walked since.   Everyone who has had this surgery that I know tells me that have you up and
walking by the second or third day.  Please advise

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hi,
I completely agree that the earlier patient movement the better it is. I’ll suggest you to discuss the same with the treating physician as there must be some attending problem that she’s not able to walk. The problem could be osteoarthritis of the knees or hips, she could have developed the complication of DVT (deep venous thrombosis) resulting in pain & thus difficulty in walking or it could be due shortness of breath which can result from poorly functioning heart. All these doubts can be clarified only after discussing with the physician. I sincerely hope that helps. Take care.

[Yvette BG]

Does she have an infection or is she having some other problems which may or may not be related to the surgery? There may be something going on medically which is preventing them from getting her up and walking.

I would definitely ask the nurse or the doctor whether she is able to walk around with assistance. If they say yes, then let them know the last time she walked around was 3 days ago. Maybe they need to order Physical Therapy or something. In general, the sooner a person can safely get up and moving around, the better--Helps maintain strength, prevent pneumonia, helps get the bowels moving regularly, improves circulation, etc.

Good luck!