trip to ER last night

[ctyguy]

happy easter all !

im just over 3 weeks post-op and have had a few bumps in the road with digestive issues but up until last night nothing unusual. yesterday evening i started getting pain in my left shoulder and it progressed to the point where i finally asked my wife to take me to the ER. I was getting stabbing pains right behind my collar bone and any kind of twisting movement was absolute agony. they ran the full round of tests including a CAT scan and all seemed ok, there is a small amount of fluid in my left lung but nothing the ER doc was concerned with, typical recovery. Also some fluid around my heart which he wanted me to speak to my cardiologist about. im due for a echo two weeks from tomorrow and he said as long as i dont get any lightheadedness or shortness of breath (neither of which im having) he was ok with the two week wait. so now my questions. fluid around the heart ? anyone with experience on this ? id like to hear cause and if necessary, resolution. second, anyone ever get severe muscle pains that are isolated ? my recovery has been pretty good from a pain standpoint. based on what ive read in here im right where i should be, incision is healy nicely and up until last night ive been moving around pretty well. any thoughts ?

fyi - im typing this one handed, ive put my left arm in a sling just to see if keeping it in one position helps. so far the jury is still out.

 

[geebee]

It sounds like pericarditis to me. Is the pain worse when you change positions or breathe deeply? If so, probably it. Your cardio can help with meds to lower the inflammation. Usually small amounts of fluid resolve on their own but intervention could be possible. I wouldn't expect intervention to be needed as it is rare. I have had pericarditis too many times to mention but chronic perdicarditis is also rare. If it turns out to be pericarditis, chances are it is controllable by meds, is a one-time post op issue and will go away in a relatively short time.

Definitely see your cardio.

 

[Phyllis]

Why put yourself through 2 weeks of worry- give the cardio a call tomorrow!

 

[WayneGM]

Ditto what Phyllis said. I had pericardial fluid issues post-op. I delayed calling and suffered the consequences by letting it get too bad and beyond being able to control with meds. I ended up hospitalized for a surgical drain. My Cardio gave me heck for not calling sooner. His advice to me "....if in doubt, call no matter what". best wishes and good luck.

 

[ctyguy]

thanks for the advice

thanks for the advice

thanks all...I will give my cardio a call in the AM first thing. Everything else is going so well if I can get this taken care of I think Im going to be in the clear.

 

[Lisa in Katy]

I wonder why the ER doc didn't call your cardiologist? It definitely sounds like pericarditis. I remember very well the pain behind the collar bone. Did the ER doctor give you a anti-inflammatory? If not, Aleve works pretty well to help the pain and the inflammation. The small amount of fluid can turn into a large amount of fluid pretty quickly, and even without fluid, pericarditis can be painful. Like Gina, I have chronic pericarditis, and have figured out that early treatment is best.

 

[Cooker]

I had it...call the cardio asap....wait 2 weeks ....no way.

 

[ctyguy]

since my valve is mechanical the er doc said he couldnt give me an anti-inflammitory, ulcers or something to that effect. he did call my cardiologist to get his opinion but i havent heard from my cardiologist today. i am going to call his office first thing tomorrow and see how he wants to procede. this is indeed painful and if its due to the fluid around my heart i want this dealt with asap. thanks all for your feedback.

 

[Ross]

since my valve is mechanical the er doc said he couldnt give me an anti-inflammitory, ulcers or something to that effect. he did call my cardiologist to get his opinion but i havent heard from my cardiologist today. i am going to call his office first thing tomorrow and see how he wants to procede. this is indeed painful and if its due to the fluid around my heart i want this dealt with asap. thanks all for your feedback.

Your ER Doc is Coumadin clueless. You can too take anti inflamatories unless your predesposed to ulcers.

 

[ctyguy]

I've never had an ulcer in my life. I wasn't happy with the ER staff last night. The first nurse came in and listened to my lungs and thought that my left lung had collapsed because she couldn't hear it properly. Don't you think you would be in a bit of distress if you had a collapsed lung ? I was fine other than this pain under my shoulder blade. The ER doc did give me pain meds which seem to be helping some. The rub is that I just got my digestive system back on track this AM (no blood, things are normal) and now Im taking a narcotic again. Hopefully my cardiologist can get this squared away tomorrow and I can get back to where I was in my recovery. I've been walking a good bit, minimal pain and even sleeping on my side some. I hadn't even considered perdicarditis until I posted this AM. Now I know what to ask my Cardiologist about tomorrow.

Its great to have so many folks available who have been down this road before. You guys have really been a huge help to me over the last month. It my intention to stick around well past my recovery period so I can hopefully do some of the same for others as they face these types of issues.

 

[Ross]

Its great to have so many folks available who have been down this road before. You guys have really been a huge help to me over the last month. It my intention to stick around well past my recovery period so I can hopefully do some of the same for others as they face these types of issues.

Oh yeah, well you better. I think it's a fair membership fee.

 

[cirrider]

For what it's worth- I had tremendous post op pain in the shoulder blade area. Was told by my surgeon that it is a result of cracking you open and pulling the ribcage apart. 3 1/2 yrs later I occasionally have some pain in same area, but mostly went away after the 1st 6 months. I agree, however, with the others that you should get it checked by your Cardio.

 

[ctyguy]

if this was something that I had since I got home I wouldn't be concerned, id chalk it up to post op healing. But this just started the other night and as I sit here tonight it still no better. I've got a stronger pain med to help deal with it but I want off the meds, I don't think this is part of the simple healing process.

 

[bvdr]

You asked about isolated muscle pains. I had a heart port approach in my right chest so I did not have my sternum opened for my mitral valve replacement so the situation is different. The more severe pains I had following surgery were from muscle spasms in my ribcage. I had a small pleural effusion as well but everything slowly improved and within a couple of weeks or so they had cleared up. I do think your idea of seeing the cardiologist in the morning is a fine idea.

 

[Lisa in Katy]

ctyguy - Here is my sure fire test for pericarditis with fluid buildup. Lie down flat on your back. Do you feel like there is an elephant standing on your chest? Sit down in a chair and lean forward slightly. Does it get better? Lean forward more (like you're tying your shoe). Does it get worse? Does it hurt to take a deep breath? If the answer to these things is yes, I'm not a doctor, but I've certainly diagnosed my own more than once!

When mine was at it's worst, lying down was painful. Back and on left side was the worst, but stomach and right side was certainly no picnic.

I also have a mechanical valve. Aleve is fine. Prednisone is another option, although certainly not the one favored by me. I now keep Mobic on hand and at the first sign of pain in my left shoulder or under my collarbone, I take it.

 

[WayneGM]

if this was something that I had since I got home I wouldn't be concerned, id chalk it up to post op healing. But this just started the other night and as I sit here tonight it still no better. I've got a stronger pain med to help deal with it but I want off the meds, I don't think this is part of the simple healing process.

I think you'll find the "simple" healing process post-OHS is a series of ups and downs. I was feeling great right after my surgery and then all of a sudden in week 3, I was feeling awful. The next thing I know, I was in the OR getting surgically drained for pericardial fluid. For the next year post-up, it was a roller coaster ride of good days and bad days. It gets better and stablizes with time, but short term if you expect recovery to be a linear progression of progressively feeling better day to day, week to week, you may be disappointed and discouraged. Take it a day at a time, have patience, and you'll be fine in the long run. Best wishes and good luck.

 

[ctyguy]

Lisa in Katy - here is what I've been feeling. Leaning backwards to a laydown position was brutal, once there it definitely feels like I have a heavy weight not on my chest but on my shoulder, that is where all the pain seems to be. When Im in a recliner Im fine as long as I don't move around, when I lean forward it hurts until Im fairly upright then the pain seems to subside. I took two Vicodin about 2 hours ago so Im sure thats masking some of the pain. When I was on the Ultracets only the other night the pain in my shoulder was brutal, didn't matter the position. Stabbing pains in my shoulder, and the muscle just behind my collar bone was real sensitive to the touch. The real bad pain lasted about 90 minutes. Once I got to the ER they ultimately gave me some Percocets which dulled it all. The fact that the ER doc said he saw more fluid around my heart than he is comfortable with tells me that there is a strong indication of pericarditis. A week ago this wasn't even on the radar, my pain was consistent with what most expect in regards to the incision. It doesn't sound like this is something I need to be freaking out about, certainly it needs to be addressed sooner rather than later but its not like its life threatening. I will be on the phone first thing tomorrow to see if I can get into my Cardiologist. If for some reason he isn't available Im going to call the Cleveland Clinic where I had the procedure and see if I can get in there quickly. Now one more question for the group. If I wake up tomorrow and the pain is gone do I shine it on ? Give it another day and see if its resolved itself ?

 

[hensylee]

seems to me you might need to go see him tomorrow. We will be anxious to know how it goes.

 

[Lisa in Katy]

See the doc tomorrow anyway. If it's pericarditis, it may come and go, but he should still be aware of it. Not to scare you, but it can be life threatening, although it's generally not. That is why many doctors like to cut the window. Mine came on with a bang at 8 weeks, and I was taking Prednisone, Tylenol and Vicodin alternating every 2 hours, and still had pain.

 

[ctyguy]

appointment set

appointment set

I just spoke with my cardiologist's office and they will see me this AM. It won't be my cardiologist but they have a practice of 10 docs. I will post later today with what they tell me, hopefully this will be a scrib for meds and not a hospital admission.