Thread: Got an enlarged heart? Get it checked out

Yesterday, I was hoping that my cardiac repairs would all be done; but it was not to be. The surgeon introduced three probes into my heart - two via veins and a third via an artery - but decided that he didn't like what he saw. He found that the hole in my heart was huge (30 mm diameter) and that its lips were too narrow for it to be able to be closed satisfactorily by an Amplatzer device. The upshot is that I shall need open-heart surgery to close the hole, and so my partially blocked coronary artery will be repaired by a bypass, instead of by stents. Fortunately, I shall not have to wait too long, and I shall get it done on January 22nd at the Holy Spirit private hospital.

Rocker

G'day Rocker,

Hope it goes well for you on the 22nd

Pity I missed the GTG,
but,
Hey!
There should be more.

Do you like..... or mind;
my addition of the Pic in my Signiture.

Ivan

All the best Rocker, sorry yesterday was a fizz but all the best for the 22nd

Just kidding, I hope. With luck, I shall be back home next weekend, in time to watch the final of the Australian Open. I hear that recovering from the physical effects of an open-heart operation is the easy part, and that some people succumb to depression. I am determined that that will not happen to me, but, if I start whining, please bear with me

Rocker

Allthe best Rocker hang in there we are all with you

Rocker,
Everyday should now get better.

Rocker,
Depression sucks. My attitude is the surgeons did their work in putting all those new beaut bits into my heart. Bionic man I'm not but I owe it to the docs who worked hard for me to make their handiwork worthwhile by getting back to as normal as I can. I'm sure you'll have the same attitude. Just thinking about depression makes me depressed so I don't even think about it. Best of luck and we'll hear from you soon.

Jerry

Everyone is entitled to my opinion

They say that a week is a long time in politics, but I can assure you that a week in hospital seems like an eternity.

If any well-meaning person tries to reassure you that open-heart surgery is a piece of cake, be a little sceptical; I feel as though I have been hit by a freight train; but that is simply due to the effect of three scars totalling 750 mm in my legs and chest; my heart feels 110%, since it no longer has to contend with the massive congenital defect with which I was born. The surgeon took a slice out of my pericardium, and used it to patch the hole between my atria. At the same time he used a vein from my thigh to serve as a coronary bypass. He had originally intended to use a vein from my calf, but for some reason rejected that as not good enough for the job.

I have to stay out of the shed for two months, until my sternum is completely healed, but it is a bit hot in there at this time of year anyway. All in all, I am a pretty happy camper.

Rocker

Great to see you ok Rocker, these things always have a little uncertainty attached.

Good news Rocker, glad to hear that you are OK

Good to see you are still with us Rocker.

Here are the pictures of the scars left by my surgery; as you can imagine, Panadol is a regular component of my diet just now.

Photo 1 shows the chest wounds; the two round holes on either side of the main cut are where the two 10 mm drain pipes emerged from my chest; the small pinholes are where the pacer wires temporarily attached to my heart emerged.

Photo 2 shows the thigh wound from which the femoral vein was harvested.

Photo 3 shows the calf wound from which it was originally intended to harvest the vein material.

Rocker

Bloody hell Rocker, what did he open you up with - an Ozito chainsaw?

Gives a new meaning to scarred for life, doesn't it?

Glad to hear all went well and you're on the mend.