Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Quadruple Bypass..... What to Expect.


I've been searching the Internet looking for information about quadruple bypass and what it really is like.... for the patient and spouse. I know there are tons of articles written by doctor sites and the American Heart Association but I was looking for real stories from people who have had it done. I have so many questions that I couldn't find the answers for. Gary has agreed to let me document and write about his procedure so someone else might find an answer they are looking for. I'll take pictures of his incisions and the subsequent healing. I'll take pictures of him as soon as I am able to see him. We'll talk about the pain, the healing and the feelings.

Tomorrow is surgery day. Tonight, Gary has to shower with a special soap and then again tomorrow morning. No eating or fluids after 6pm. We have to be at the hospital at 6am and surgery is scheduled for 8:15am. Gary has four blockages that are going to be bypassed. The surgeon will be using his Internal Mammary Artery(IMA) to bypass his Left Coronary Artery and Gary's saphenous vein from his leg to graft and bypass the other 3 areas. I'm told the operation will last between 4-6 hours and Gary will be in a cardiac ICU for most of tomorrow until he comes out of anesthesia and the breathing tube comes out.
Stay tuned for postings of his progress.

6 comments:

The Father of Five said...

Good Luck... Prayers.

Andrea said...

Hi,

I've been reading (lurking) for a while, and I'd like to offer help. I'm an RN who currently works ICU, but I moonlight as a Cardiac Rehab RN and used to work on a cardiac step-down, working with patients 2-4 days out from heart surgery. If you need anything, shoot me an email. You can click it on my profile.

Lots of luck to both of you!

Sharpie said...

Good luck to him and you and I will be thinking of you both!

ccw said...

I hope it went well and that he is on the road to a successful recovery.

Sharpie said...

Thinking of you.....

Heart and Vein Center said...

This is a great article...Nice post, it is important for us to read and know even a little information related to our health.