OT Heart valve uodate

[nightjar]

Thank you to everyone who contributed and to those who offered good wishes. It also surprised me how many people I know who know someone on Warfarin. For those who asked, this is the latest situation.

There was a strong consensus that Warfarin is a serious intrusion upon your lifestyle. As my GP put it, it is OK if all you are doing is sitting around, not doing much, and taking your Warfarin, but not if you want to lead any sort of active life. He also said he would have concerns about my liver, given my previous history, if I were put on Warfarin. That was this morning and only served to confirm the impression I had been getting from all other sources. He also reinforced my view that there were likely to be significant advances in cardiac medicine in the next 10-20 years, while Warfarin has not been improved upon in the past 50 years. So, the result is that the artificial valve is not an option I am prepared to consider.

Now I am waiting for an appointment with the surgeon, to see whether he would be prepared to consider me for the Ross procedure, in which one of my heart valves is used to replace the damaged aortic valve and the other valve has the tissue replacement. It has the advantages that the aortic valve, which is the most highly stressed, is a living valve that ought not to deteriorate, the replacement valve should last longer in the alternative position and replacing it is an easier operation. The downside is that it adds about an hour to the operation, which increases the morbidity risk, and I am borderline for the age at which it is usually carried out. I hope to find out whether that is down to the accountants at NICE, because there are good clinical reasons not to, or whether the concern is about older patient survival rate. At least I am fairly fit and have excellent lung function, which should help with the last.

One advantage of swine flu; heart operations are being moved to an adjacent private hospital, still on the NHS and with the same surgical team. That should both free up ITU beds in the main hospital and avoid the possibility of exposing recovering heart patients to the disease, which I had been wondering about. They are currently looking at booking me in around mid to late August, subject to what the surgeon says. I'll post an update when I know that.

Thanks to all

Colin Bignell

[S Viemeister]

nightjar One advantage of swine flu; heart operations are being moved to an adjacent

Best wishes for an uneventful surgery, and a speedy recovery.

Sheila

[The Medway Handyman]

And from me.

[brass monkey]

Yes, all the best with it. I had a CABG 4 years back and worried like hell about what i'd find/see when I woke up. I have to tell you, they have it sorted, nothing to worry about.

[nightjar]

Thank you all. Having spoken to a couple of people who have had the same operation, I'm fairly relaxed about the whole thing. In any case, my partner is doing enough worrying for both of us. She keeps giving me regular reports on how Betty Boothroyd is doing, which seems to be encouraging her.

Colin Bignell

[Owain]

Wehey! Prettier nurses, better food and cleaner wards!

Owain

[nightjar]

Ward? I'm expecting a private room.

Colin Bignell

[Cash]

Colin,

Don't build your hopes up too high!

My daughter had an NHS operation that was performed in a private hospital - and she had to share a room with another patient. Daughter did say though that she was glad of this, as it eased the boredom.

BTW, both of the patients were bed-bound for a few days after their ops their and tempers were a little fraught as both were smokers - and it was rather funny to watch their 'sufferings' over those few days.

Hell, they didn't half moan about it - nag, nag, nag nearly all visiting time. LOL

All the best for a speedy recovery Colin.

Cash

[Dave Liquorice]

I'd like to think that a private hospital taking on cardiac work also has the backup of a resus/ITU just down the corridor. It has been known for private patients being shipped to NHS ITUs when it all goes pear shaped in the private theatre or afterwards.

Colin will not need those things of course but...

[nightjar]

The private hospital does seem to be well equipped; it has a laminar flow operating theatre for example. After the operation I will be in a critical care level 2 facility, which seems to cover everything short of complete respiratory support or multiple organ failure. Fortunately, given the number of tubes and wires I will be attached to, I probably won't recall much of the first couple of days, when I am in there.

Colin Bignell

[nightjar]

The hospital web site does promise single bed private rooms, but that may only be for the private patients. I have been stockpiling books for months now, so I'm not expecting boredom to be a problem. Experience suggests that Owain is right about the nurses. I suspect the pretty ones look for jobs in private hospitals, to catch themselves rich husbands. I had my gall bladder out privately - the pain was too much to wait 14 months for the NHS. One of the nurses became decidely less friendly when she discovered that one of my female visitors was my long term partner.

Fortunately, not a problem for me. When the nurse did my lung function test she could tell I'd never smoked.

Thank you

Colin Bignell

[Dave]

nightjar Thank you all. Having spoken to a couple of people who have had the same

I know my problem is dwarfed by yours, but parts of what I have gone through might ring a bell with you.

Until recently, the only opperation I have had where I have had a full, was when I was seven years old. I can't remember it.

All subsequent ones have been done under a local. However, last October I was wheeled down for an op under a local to have a detached retina sorted. They hooked me up to monitoring devices and ten minutes later I was wheeled back up to the ward after being told I would have to have a full before they could opperate. By this time, my blood pressure had leaped from very high to above cloud level with worry about losing the sight in my left eye and undergoing a full. On top of this was my worry about not coming round from going under. I even threatened the anethasist that I would come back and haunt him if I died.

In the end, I wondered what I had worried about. Modern medicine has moved on so much, it is nothing like it was 10 years ago.

Manchester's Royal eye hospital retinal unit is a centre of absolute excelence in my mind, after spending Fri. Sat. Sunday there.

I won't wish you good luck, but I will say that I am looking forward to new posts from you. I am that confident you will be back amongst us soon.

Dave

[Harry]

Hopefully you'll be among other cardiac patients who are also awaiting similar procedures, rather than a general unit wherein you get, trust me, some very "interesting" and "entertaining" room mates - for some reason they mostly kick off at night. The thing to look out for is when the nurse tells you to take a deep breath as she removes the urinary catheter. Do take a deep breath, but also find something to hold on to, tightly ;->

[dennis]

"nightjar.me.uk>"

You will wake up in the nhs hospital next door if anything goes wrong though. 8-)

I don't know what you are worrying about.. its not like they are doing an op to remove an unknown lump from your thyroid gland like they did with me 20 years ago.

"We have done a needle biopsy and its clear but we had better take a look anyway"

The worst part is the sheer boredom of being in hospital.

I went home early complete with the stitches around my throat and came back to have the removed as I couldn't stand it any longer.

[dennis]

"nightjar.me.uk>" The private hospital does seem to be well equipped; it has a laminar flow

Sounds like my nearest NHS hospital except they have more than one. I suppose you only need one in a private hospital as they only do planned stuff.

[Steve Walker]

Hmmm, our experience of MREH is not quite so good.

My wife has had a peripheral vision problem since March of last year and was referred to MREH. This problem is stopping her driving (she misinterprets speed and distance of objects approaching from the left) and as she is a Community Psychiatric Nurse, not being able to drive means she cannot work.

After being bounced from one department to another (five conmsultants so far), with a six week wait for each, then six weeks to have tests (frequently repeats of tets that the other consultants have already had done), then another four weeks before she can see someone to get the results, she is getting nowhere.

She recently saw a consultant who told her that "we need to get to the bottom of this" and made an appointment to see her again three weeks later

- when she went in, he was not available and she saw a different consultant, who said that he didn't know what the problem was, but could cure her problems surgically, by permanently blinding her in the left eye! He then wrote a letter to her GP saying that this was the solution he was offering and other than that he was taking no further action!

So here we are 15 months down the line, with no idea what the problem is and only an offer of permanently blinding her in one eye. We politely informed him that this course of action was too drastic for an undiagnosed condition, but he has since sent a letter pushing her to go for this option.

SteveW

[Dave Liquorice]

That rings the "marketing puff" alarm bell in my mind. I'd rather know that the autoclaves are properly maintained and used correctly so that all the bits of steel they stick in me are clean and sterile and that their procedures for rotating stocks of consumables are robust so nothing is "out of date" and that the prodecures for counting all the bits in and all the bits out are similary robust.

[george (dicegeorge)]

cant you test this theory by wearing an eyepatch over one eye for a week?

Pirates are in fashion!

[g]

[nightjar]

When I were a lad, my dentist used to use general anaesthetic for almost everything short of a minor filling. I have also been under a general for a gall bladder removal, about 8 years ago. Rohipnol seems to have been the drug of choice for most procdures since. It is weird to discover you have had a long telephone conversation with someone and not be able to recall even phoning.

I think eye problems worry me a lot more than the heart operation. I won't know if I die, but I would know if I went blind. I waited three months for an eye clinic appointment and, when the consultant saw me, he said, come in tomorrow at 9am. I'm operating on you then. When the NHS works that fast it is worrying.. Fortunately, my retina was only torn and had not detached, so it was a quick and simple repair job and I was out of hospital by 11am.

This is what I'm gambling on with the valve choice.

So am I., but I'm having a will drawn up, just in case.

Colin Bignell

[nightjar]

I used to be in medical device manufacture and my check list is a lot longer than that, but I doubt I get much choice in the matter and they will be keeping me away from people with flu.

Colin Bignell