samiam
New member
October 10. Day 0: Surgical showtime at Emory Saint Josephs was 5 am. DaVinci patients get a special shaving routine. No problem with happy drugs and away I went. I woke up in Cardiac ICU around 5 pm. Apparently I stayed in the OR a bit longer because they were monitoring for oozing. As I was waking up, the breathing tube, the central line and the chest tube came out. They had me sit in a chair for an hour or so.
Day 1: The next morning, more chair sitting. The urinary catheter came out and I was transferred to Cardiac step-down in the afternoon, maybe 24 hours in ICU. Everyone has a private room and bathroom. My family and I did some walking around the floor. I must urinate by 9 pm or they take additional action. I finally won the war at 10 pm and the nurse was happy, as was I! The noise level from the nurse’s station and their monitors, along with what seemed to be non-stop checking for this and that made sleep impossible. Vital signs every four hours; blood sugar finger stick a different four hour period. Let’s get weighed at 5 am and let’s draw your blood around then, too. My wounds consist of the left groin catheter, which is much larger than a normal catheter. It’s super-glued, so no stitches or bandages. My inside thigh, from just below the area to almost my knee, is numb. That’s to be expected. The left hip doesn’t bend well, making sitting on the toilet interesting. The central line wound on the right side looks very angry. It doesn’t have any stitches; maybe it’s super glued, too. And finally, I have the 5 DaVinci wounds. Four of them might be a quarter inch and are probably super-glued. The biggest one has a stitch or two for the chest tube. My inside right elbow has a huge bruise and the arm complains if I try to straighten it. The skin on my right upper chest is also numb. I look great as a Halloween zombie.
Day 2: More testing, more walking. All of my numbers look good except my BP, which is usually around 95/65, is now 85/40. They give me drugs to raise it. Time for sleep and the finger-sticker sugar-tester says they are done with testing. Ah, my fingers rejoice because the tips are getting number and turning black.
Day 3: The doctor came in around 1 pm and asked if I’d like to go home. Half of me says “What?” and the other half says “What!” Three hours later, I’m in the hotel room, allowed to take my normal medications including Ambien.
Day 4: I sleep in, walk the hotel hallways, go down to breakfast. Those Holiday Inn cinnamon rolls are even more fantastic in person.
Day 5: Blood test in the morning with an 8 am doctor appointment. My INR is 2.28. The doctor removes the one or two stitches and I’m cleared to be driven home that day. I have a new pig valve, which replaced the cow valve I got 9 years ago. I also have a cow patch covering what’s called “the appendage” in the left atrium. This area is a prime spot for clots to form, and, by patching it, might eventually let me get off warfarin.
Day 6: We make the 6-hour drive home with no issues.
Day 13: Has it really been less than 2 weeks? Follow-up visit with my cardiologist. Everything is normal, including a baseline echo. It will take time for the bruising, tingling and numbness to go away. I can do everything except tie my left shoe.
Day 18: My INR is within range. I can bend and put on my socks and tie my shoes. No physical therapy, except for the recommended exercises from the hospital.
In summary, I highly recommend anyone in this situation at least look into the robotic option. Comparing my minimally invasive MVR 9 years ago to this robotic surgery, there is no comparison, especially when dealing with recovery.
Day 1: The next morning, more chair sitting. The urinary catheter came out and I was transferred to Cardiac step-down in the afternoon, maybe 24 hours in ICU. Everyone has a private room and bathroom. My family and I did some walking around the floor. I must urinate by 9 pm or they take additional action. I finally won the war at 10 pm and the nurse was happy, as was I! The noise level from the nurse’s station and their monitors, along with what seemed to be non-stop checking for this and that made sleep impossible. Vital signs every four hours; blood sugar finger stick a different four hour period. Let’s get weighed at 5 am and let’s draw your blood around then, too. My wounds consist of the left groin catheter, which is much larger than a normal catheter. It’s super-glued, so no stitches or bandages. My inside thigh, from just below the area to almost my knee, is numb. That’s to be expected. The left hip doesn’t bend well, making sitting on the toilet interesting. The central line wound on the right side looks very angry. It doesn’t have any stitches; maybe it’s super glued, too. And finally, I have the 5 DaVinci wounds. Four of them might be a quarter inch and are probably super-glued. The biggest one has a stitch or two for the chest tube. My inside right elbow has a huge bruise and the arm complains if I try to straighten it. The skin on my right upper chest is also numb. I look great as a Halloween zombie.
Day 2: More testing, more walking. All of my numbers look good except my BP, which is usually around 95/65, is now 85/40. They give me drugs to raise it. Time for sleep and the finger-sticker sugar-tester says they are done with testing. Ah, my fingers rejoice because the tips are getting number and turning black.
Day 3: The doctor came in around 1 pm and asked if I’d like to go home. Half of me says “What?” and the other half says “What!” Three hours later, I’m in the hotel room, allowed to take my normal medications including Ambien.
Day 4: I sleep in, walk the hotel hallways, go down to breakfast. Those Holiday Inn cinnamon rolls are even more fantastic in person.
Day 5: Blood test in the morning with an 8 am doctor appointment. My INR is 2.28. The doctor removes the one or two stitches and I’m cleared to be driven home that day. I have a new pig valve, which replaced the cow valve I got 9 years ago. I also have a cow patch covering what’s called “the appendage” in the left atrium. This area is a prime spot for clots to form, and, by patching it, might eventually let me get off warfarin.
Day 6: We make the 6-hour drive home with no issues.
Day 13: Has it really been less than 2 weeks? Follow-up visit with my cardiologist. Everything is normal, including a baseline echo. It will take time for the bruising, tingling and numbness to go away. I can do everything except tie my left shoe.
Day 18: My INR is within range. I can bend and put on my socks and tie my shoes. No physical therapy, except for the recommended exercises from the hospital.
In summary, I highly recommend anyone in this situation at least look into the robotic option. Comparing my minimally invasive MVR 9 years ago to this robotic surgery, there is no comparison, especially when dealing with recovery.
