AllBodySurgery.com - Have you had problems after open heart surgery?

Have you had problems after open heart surgery?

My husband had open heart by-pass surgery (5 of them) back in March and when he came to in the ICU he said" my left arm is killing me"and everyone just passed it off as the IV needle bothering him, but since then he has been in constant pain with it. It swells and draws up on its own. We have been to numerous doctors and hospitals for it and still no answers. Has anyone else had a similiar problem or if you are in the medical profession can you give us some help. Thank-you.

Public Comments

Need not worry , my uncle had it .Go to a good & famous surgeon .God bless! Everything is gonna be fine.
hi, i have to answer this question using my other yahoo account there is a condition called REFLEX SYMPATHETIC DYSTROPHY It consists of severe pain + swelling + possibly localized sweating + x-ray of the hand must show localized osteoporosis. treatment is surgical where they remove a tiny NERVE collection (ganglion) from the neck you will first need to see a good doctor ( may be a neurologists).i I hope he will get well soon.
Not sure if it is the same thing my hubby had or not but here is what happened. After his by-pass he kept having really painful spasms in his arms. They were so bad they would make him fall over if he was trying to get up using his arms. He was sent to a pain specialist. (Apparently during by-pass the position your arms are in can cause problems.) X-rays and MRI showed compression in his neck. They sent him to physical therapy. I know that sounds stupid when you are in that kind of pain and they tell you that you need to get physical. However, he was put in a machine or piece of equipment, (what ever they call it), and they stretched his neck. After going for two weeks, two times a week, he was pain free. He can now reach for anything without going into spasms. He can reach behind him before he could not even reach for his fork without being in horrible pain. He had this for about 10 months before he finally found the pain doctor who really listened. He told him he would get to the bottom of it and he did. So, I would check to see if your husband can see a pain doctor and see what he thinks. Good Luck and God Bless !
ask about DRESSLERS SYNDROME. i just had (another) heart surgery in june. and i was out in a week, but a week later i was back in there for another week and a day with dresslers syndrome. but dresslers syndrome causes inflamation, which can lead to swelling. it kept me in the hospital longer than the actual surgery. i was in alot of pain (the blood cultures everyday didn't help the pain, or figure out what it was) they even consulted the infection disease team-just to figure out it was dresslers syndrome which is generalized inflammation-(has no specific area it effects)- It is caused by the heart muscles being "injured"-(in other words, surgery) the cure? Not any of those highly expensive IV Antibiotics they had me on for the first 6 days. i ended up taking 12 advil (ibprofen) a day for a week then 9 a day for a week, and so on (don't do that unless that is what you are told to do by your husband's cardiologist.) so, you may want to ask about it, or research it at least-(tell them an 18 yr. old sent you-but a very informed 18 yr. old, who had dresslers syndrome)