Palpitations and migraines following surgery

[heartweave]

I am not sure where to put these questions. I have't had surgery but these are post surgery questions. As one with BAV stenosis 0.7 I will be having a replacement within the next few months. I am meeting with Dr. Craig Miller at Stanford for a second opinion and further tests. My initial surgical consult I was offered Minimally Invasive.

I do have a history of anemia as well as lymphedema. I have had multiple extensive but not cardiac surgeries Last year I had an 8 hour spinal procedure and had horrible lymphedema. I am still using a pump to try and clear the fluid I gained almost 20 lbs of fluid over the course of a few days. They say the problem was the stenosis and my heart could not clear the fluid.

Question 1. I have been having palpitations. There is no rhyme or reason for when they commence. I almost always wake up with my heart racing. It is such a horrible feeling, For years I minimized the symptom when I went to visit my cardiologist. Then when I was prescribed propranidol I rarely took it and when I did I only took a half. Now I feel silly about the whole thing.

I thought after the surgery the palpitations would be gone. I was alarmed to hear from someone else that they had daily palpitations even 2 years after surgery, It is such an uncomfortable feeling. Can someone comment on this please.....

Question 2: Lymphedema, fluid retention and breathing. My breathing volume is fairly low with the spirometry. Given my recent history of lymphedema and having the minimally invasive procedure, I am concerned about having problem breathing, pain on coughing, phlegm, etc.etc. When I had my spinal fusion ( 16 hour surgery), my lung collapsed and i woke up in ICU with 2 chest tubes. Someone recently sent me the link for the sternal talon implants instead of the surgical wire. Does anyone have experience with this pro or con or comments for me? Are they removed at some point or is this just another device I have to learn to live with inside my body ( i.e. titanium plate, cage, clips, total right knee, etc.) http://www.klsmartinnorthamerica.com/products/implants/sternal/sternal-talon/

Question 3: Migraines. I just learned that some people develop the ocular migraine symptoms following the heart-lung machine. I have had a history of ocular migraines. Year ago they were fairly prevalent but during the last decade I only have a few episodes a year. Is this a common side effect?

I would like to say that I am usually not such a worry-wart. In the past I just plunged into surgery and then asked questions afterwards. I realized though it is important to be an advocate for yourself. I now am most comfortable doing the research and making informed decisions before I go under the knife.

I do know there is much I cannot control and that each person is unique, each surgery unique, etc. etc. etc. On the other hand...this is heavy stuff. This is my heart. I only have one ticker. I am trying to stay calm with the fact that not only will someone have their hands on my heart but my heart will be stopped as well.

I am so happy to have all of you.....I will be so relieved when I am on the other side of this surgery but until then.....I will keep on questioning.....

Thanks all

Leah

 

[AZ Don]

Hi,
1. I often had a brief flutter prior to surgery, and one episode that made me a little light headed and lasted for a couple minutes a week or two prior to surgery. After surgery I had a couple episodes of a-fib. The 1st did not subside after taking an extra dose of metoprolol so I went to the emergency room and it stopped as soon as they gave me another beta blocker. 2nd time it stopped some time after taking an extra dose of metoprolol. It is my understanding that it is not uncommon to have occurrences of afib in the couple months following OHS. It generally stops after that point - mine did. FYI, ways to stop afib (aside from meds or surgery):
a. Wash face with cold water and hold breath. This triggers the dive reflex which can slow the heart rate 10-25%: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mammalian_diving_reflex
b. Cough
c. rub neck by artery
d. bear down - vasalva maneuver.
I never had the chance to try these as I found out about them after my last episode.
2. Although I had a little fluid in my lungs I really didn't notice it except my voice sounded a little hoarse to me. Coughing wasn't too bad but it can get worse with repeated coughing. Sneezing is worse. Don't know about the sternal talons, I have wires.
3. Haven't heard about this. I didn't have migraines.

Overall this was just another surgery (I've had a few and my knee surgery was worse) and I felt pretty good most of the time even in the hospital. One thing I found was that even though I didn't have much pain, I tended to feel a little sick sometimes in the 1st week or two, but only when I wasn't taking painkillers (Rx while in the hospital, otc ibuprofen once I was home). FYI, I wrote about my experience in the hospital here: http://www.valvereplacement.org/forums/showthread.php?41644-Good-to-be-back-home&highlight=

Good luck. Remember that this surgery is routine for your surgical team and that most people come through without significant complications.

 

[kfay]

I had a history of rhythm problems before surgery and still have them afterwards. In my case, they just go hand in hand with my congenital heart disease. It's common for people to experience some rhythm issues right after surgery and as the heart heals and remodels itself, but you shouldn't expect that you are going to have long term rhythm problems.

I have terrible migraines, and yes, after surgery they were increased for a while. I had both occular migraines (just the aura, no actual headache), as well as "regular" migraines with the head pain. I can't remember how long I had this increased migraine pattern, but I want to say it was for a couple of weeks.

It's hard to say what issues you might encounter post op. Every body is different, and therefore reacts to surgery differently and heals differently. It's good to prepare yourself for things that might happen so they aren't a surprise if you do get them, but I wouldn't dwell on them if I were you.

Like Don, I recently had an orthopedic surgery on my lower leg that has been much worse in every way (pain, recovery, etc.) than my heart surgeries ever were.

Best of luck.

 

[neil]

good post kfay totally agree

 

[Mentu]

Leah, the one thing of which you can be certain is that your recovery will not be identical to anyone else's and will probably be far better than you expect. In the weeks before my valve replacement, I had terrible episodes of palpitations which left me exhausted. I worried most that in the weeks after surgery I would be an invalid and unable to live on my own. From the moment, I woke up in my own room, the palpitations were gone and never reappeared. By the first walk around the hospital floor and my first shower, I knew that my fears of being an invalid were completely unfounded in reality. In fact, none of the things I worried about before surgery ever happened. Anxiety in the weeks before surgery is something almost everyone shares so you should feel you are one of us. Sharing concerns and fears is one of the best ways to subvert them.

Larry

 

[clay_from_nj]

As to migraines, I had them very bad when I was a teenager. Now I just have the occasional "silent" migraine - aura, partial vision "white out", even confusion and aphasia. The scary part is that I may never know if I have a stroke due to thrombosis as I would probably write it off as another migraine. And they didn't seem to change at all as a result of surgery.