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Are there common long-term psychological side-effects to open-heart surgery ?

Recently my father-in-law (66) had heart surgery to replace valves and put in bypasses (he has Type 2 diabetes and a kidney transplant around 8 years ago). A few days after the operation, in addition to the medication prescribed, he was told to begin exercising to aid recovery. For a couple of weeks he took virtually no exercise at all and spent most of the time asleep. He complained of aching pain and fatigue and would not be motivated to do anything. Routine tests during visits to the doctor could find nothing wrong. After two weeks of this inactivity he began to talk nonsense and suffer hallucinations so we took him back to hospital. Since then (3 weeks ago) it has been a cycle of around 5 days in intensive care, sometimes fed on a drip, after which he seems coherent enough to be moved to a less intensive ward. In a few days, the delerium returns and he goes back to intensive care. The doctors cannot pinpoint the problem but are now saying he may never recover. What to do

Public Comments

1. I am sorry your dad has so many medical issues. Yes he can have psychological problems because of these conditions. Get to a mental health clinic and try getting him help there. God bless him.
2. Yes, there are long-term psychological side-effects to open-heart surgery. One would be very protective & possibly scared. Open-heart surgery is a near death experience & will have long lasting psychological side-effects. He needs support, compassion, respect & reassurance. He's also probably feeling very tired & needs something to look forward to.
3. There are often problems post op. Google "The Zipper Club". They offer excellent support to heart op patients and families. Thinking of your FIL and wishing him a fast recovery;
4. You have my deepest sympathy. I have had heart surgery twice, and, am pleased to say, have had no detriment effects. In fact, totally the opposite. It has felt good to be alive. I do appreciate that different people will react in different ways, but what you describe, I have never come across. And I am involved with a rehabilitation group and have a brother and sister-in-law who have also had numerous heart operations, (family trait). There must some underlying cause for this that the doctors need to find, and quickly. Best of luck.
5. There are some very good answers above. There may be several factors invloved here, and I am sure the doctors have also considered the psychological aspects too. Any surgery can have some psychological effects, but the older you get, the more profound they may be since it acts as a reminder to our own mortality. I dont know what drugs your father may take currently, but in combination with the need for surgery, the effects of anaesthsia and follow on drugs, it would not suprise me to discover that someone may experience hallucinations and or dellusions, as various chemicals interact with brain chemistry to produce some unusual behavioural patterns. As for advice, this would be difficult since there are clearly serious medical conditions that require intensive therapy currently. Seek specialist help services like those listed by other members above. I guess that your father may need longer term help and support. Good luck and I hope your father recovers soon.