Broken Wire Sutures

[itspin]

In Sept of 2007 my husband had bi-pass surgery.  He has been having cronic pain at the surgical sight and down his sternum.  Dr's finally did a chest xray and it shows several of the wire sutures have broken.  Any idea how they will treat this???

[Archibald S Miller III, MD,FACS]

I am Dr. Arch S. Miller of Tulsa Oklahoma. I am working with Dr. Scott Levin of Duke University and Dr. James Spann of tulsa on this problem Please go to the website rapidsternal closure.com and you will see the solution to your problem  We have 500 cases with this device and it is being used in 6 foreign countries as well as the texas heart institute . My office number is 918-492-2282 and we can be contacted between the hours of 9 AM and 5 PM monday thorugh friday. Thank you for your time.

                         arch s miller md facs

[itspin]

Thanks so much for your input.  Yes, he will have decisions to make.  He has been on pain medication (vicodin) to help, but, it's ongoing.  And, it was the grinding that he was feeling that lead to the chest xray... so, sounds like he'll have to have new sternal wires.
Thanks again

[kenkeith]

When a sternal wire fractures, there are many different options available that may be used. Sometimes, the pain goes away  with conservative therapy with analgesics and rest.

In other situations, the fractured wire needs to be removed if the pain is too severe. If this happens, it should set the recovery back depending on the degree of healing that has progressed. If the sternal bones are still grinding together, your husband may need to have new sternal wires inserted. There is no "correct" answer to your question, but, something should be done to relieve the pain.