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Triple Heart Bypass
Hi, we have recently found out that my Father-in Law needs a triple bypass. He had testing due to angina symptoms (thank god)
We know a little about this operation but nothing really from someone that has been through this. We basically want the warts and all story, the procedure, after care and recovery, he is 66 and a diabetic so it seems he is High-Risk.
His wife is considerably disabled herself and needs more or less 24 hour care so we really need to have some kind of plan in place.
Thanks in advance
Lou
We know a little about this operation but nothing really from someone that has been through this. We basically want the warts and all story, the procedure, after care and recovery, he is 66 and a diabetic so it seems he is High-Risk.
His wife is considerably disabled herself and needs more or less 24 hour care so we really need to have some kind of plan in place.
Thanks in advance
Lou
Hi, I had a triple bypass in 2007 at the age of 47. I am going to be totally honest with you here, because what I expected (told by surgeons and cardiologists) is certainly NOT what I experienced. Meeting with many other patients since then has reinforced that what I experienced is the normal.
Warn your Father in law that when he wakes up from surgery, he will have a tube down his throat, breathing for him. It is NOT uncomfortable in any way, but if you are not warned, you tend to panic and start thinking something went wrong in surgery. If your Father in law feels discomfort (and believe me he will), then he can ask for extra pain relief because you are only given the minimum as a standard. There is no need to suffer. When in the ward he will have three drainage tubes from his chest going into containers. This is monitored every day until the blood stops accumulating, at which time the tubes are removed and the holes closed up with stitches. The purse string stitches are already in place, they just need to be tied up. There will be a small wire protruding from the chest too, which will be yanked out. This is in case an emergency pacer is required. NO discomfort is felt from this or removal of the drain tubes. In fact, some of the discomforts disappear once the tubes are removed. Mine were removed after 2 days. On day three I was encouraged to walk, including up and down stairs. Day 5 I was discharged. Once home, I had to make an appointment for a community nurse to come and remove my stitches. However, some patients have staples, which also require removal. After surgery, I felt hungry but felt nauseous when I ate anything. I think all I managed for 2 days was a yoghurt and a glass of fresh orange. This seemed normal looking at other patients in the ward. On day three, this problem started to slowly go away. Once home, I didn't have the energy to do much and just wanted to lay down most of the time. I gave myself a week of good rest and only walked when I needed the bathroom. Mental stimuli is important, you need someone to talk to, the mind and body has been through a lot of trauma. After a week I started to go for walks for 30 mins a day, on a flat surface only. It really was difficult because your chest feels so tight that you can only take small sharp breaths. My discomforts lasted 12 months, but most patients are told they will last three months. 12 months or longer is very common. To be honest, I would say that two months is required before you can completely survive alone. It takes at least 6 weeks for the sternum to mend and allow you to start lifting objects heavier than a filled kettle. After 2 months I was able to lift quite heavy objects with no problem.
On a side issue here, before surgery I would ask your surgeon to look at the condition of your Father in law's internal mammary arteries, both the left and right side (Lima/Rima).
IF they are in good condition, then I would ask them to use these for the most important of the three grafts because they far out survive veins. I had my Lima used and 2 veins from my leg. After just 3 months, the veins completely closed up, which is not as uncommon as people would like to think. The Lima is still fully open with no issues and will last a very long time. IF your Father in law suddenly feels it's more difficult to breath, such as walking up stairs or a hill, then get him looked at by a cardiologist. When I had this problem everyone thought I was nuts but an angiogram revealed the closed veins. Nobody knows your body better than you do, that's the motto to keep in mind.
If you have any more questions, please don't hesitate to message me, and I really do wish him good luck. I'm sure the surgery will go just fine.
I hope this helps
Warn your Father in law that when he wakes up from surgery, he will have a tube down his throat, breathing for him. It is NOT uncomfortable in any way, but if you are not warned, you tend to panic and start thinking something went wrong in surgery. If your Father in law feels discomfort (and believe me he will), then he can ask for extra pain relief because you are only given the minimum as a standard. There is no need to suffer. When in the ward he will have three drainage tubes from his chest going into containers. This is monitored every day until the blood stops accumulating, at which time the tubes are removed and the holes closed up with stitches. The purse string stitches are already in place, they just need to be tied up. There will be a small wire protruding from the chest too, which will be yanked out. This is in case an emergency pacer is required. NO discomfort is felt from this or removal of the drain tubes. In fact, some of the discomforts disappear once the tubes are removed. Mine were removed after 2 days. On day three I was encouraged to walk, including up and down stairs. Day 5 I was discharged. Once home, I had to make an appointment for a community nurse to come and remove my stitches. However, some patients have staples, which also require removal. After surgery, I felt hungry but felt nauseous when I ate anything. I think all I managed for 2 days was a yoghurt and a glass of fresh orange. This seemed normal looking at other patients in the ward. On day three, this problem started to slowly go away. Once home, I didn't have the energy to do much and just wanted to lay down most of the time. I gave myself a week of good rest and only walked when I needed the bathroom. Mental stimuli is important, you need someone to talk to, the mind and body has been through a lot of trauma. After a week I started to go for walks for 30 mins a day, on a flat surface only. It really was difficult because your chest feels so tight that you can only take small sharp breaths. My discomforts lasted 12 months, but most patients are told they will last three months. 12 months or longer is very common. To be honest, I would say that two months is required before you can completely survive alone. It takes at least 6 weeks for the sternum to mend and allow you to start lifting objects heavier than a filled kettle. After 2 months I was able to lift quite heavy objects with no problem.
On a side issue here, before surgery I would ask your surgeon to look at the condition of your Father in law's internal mammary arteries, both the left and right side (Lima/Rima).
IF they are in good condition, then I would ask them to use these for the most important of the three grafts because they far out survive veins. I had my Lima used and 2 veins from my leg. After just 3 months, the veins completely closed up, which is not as uncommon as people would like to think. The Lima is still fully open with no issues and will last a very long time. IF your Father in law suddenly feels it's more difficult to breath, such as walking up stairs or a hill, then get him looked at by a cardiologist. When I had this problem everyone thought I was nuts but an angiogram revealed the closed veins. Nobody knows your body better than you do, that's the motto to keep in mind.
If you have any more questions, please don't hesitate to message me, and I really do wish him good luck. I'm sure the surgery will go just fine.
I hope this helps
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Here is a dedicated website from the Cleveland Clinic regarding frequently asked questions about coronary artery bypass surgery (CABG).
http://my.clevelandclinic.org/heart/disorders/cad/treatment_heartsurg.aspx
http://my.clevelandclinic.org/heart/disorders/cad/treatment_heartsurg.aspx
youre very welcome
Thankyou so much for such a detailed account of your experience, this was exactly what we wanted, no point beating around the bush.
He is pretending at the moment we are all worried about nothing!
I just hope he doesn't try to push himself too hard in order to look after my mother in law.
By what you've said though, he won't be able to.. I'll keep you posted how he gets on.
Thankyou again
He is pretending at the moment we are all worried about nothing!
I just hope he doesn't try to push himself too hard in order to look after my mother in law.
By what you've said though, he won't be able to.. I'll keep you posted how he gets on.
Thankyou again
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