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Breathing difficulties after heart surgery

Hi
I am very anxious these days as my father (72 year-old) had to undergo (since ( 5 days ago) a quadruple coronary bypassHeart surgery. There were no complications with the surgery itself. However since the day of the operation he is experiencing some difficulties in breathing. Doctors have helped him (for 4 days) to breath with intubation. But without it he has short breathing and a lot of difficulty to inhale/exhale. Knowing that my father was a heavy smoker I would like to know if he is in a critical health situation.
Thank you for your help and assistance
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367994 tn?1304953593
The etiology of a respiration disorder as it relates to the heart would be to deprive the heart cells of oxygenated blood and this condition is medically termed hypoxia, and can lead to heart failure. Also, there a deficiency in the amount of blood/oxygen delivered to the body tissues and organs, brain, etc. that could cause a medical problem.

Stablize the oxygen level will help the kidneys, and guard against a heart prolbem..  When the condition is severe and unrelenting there would be organ failure, and or heart failure.  The worst case scenario would more likely be cardiac arrest. but don't focus on that aspect.

Take care, and I wish your father well going forward.

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Avatar universal
Thank you for your response. According to doctors my father's heart is now fine and no problem with it. The only issue is his severe difficulty to breath. Doctors worry that he will continue to rely on the c-pap and cannot overpass it. I should add that my father had some kedney problems before and after the operation. However his kidneys are slowly recovering (2 liters of urine/day) though the creatinine is still high. As I said; all the focus now is on the breathing issue. Can this problem lead to suffocation.
Thank you.
Helpful - 0
367994 tn?1304953593
Often the post surgery recovery is based on the medical condition prior to the CABG.  If the heart was pumping less than normal and if the left ventricle was enlarged, the heart may be weaker than normal dispite the bypass of the occluded vessels that now provides a better blood flow to the prevously blood deficient areas of the heart. Also, elderly patients with significant preoperative other health issues particularly COPD (respiratory distress), kidney failure, or unstable angina (chest pain due to heart condtion).

Sorry to hear of your father's medical problems, and it may take more time to recover, but it appears he is getting good medical care.  It is difficult to answer your question regarding prognosis as that depends on the underlying cause and treatment.  

Thanks for sharing, and if you have any further question or comments you are welcome to respond.  Take care

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