Emergency Heart Catheter

Lea, so glad to hear he’s home and back on the recovery path. Happy Thanksgiving to you both, much to be grateful for!

Lea I'm so glad DH is home with you and Honey!

No wonder he is tired and still hurting, he has been through a lot, you both have, but thankfully he is on the mend and the hardest parts are behind you.

Lots of R&R for you and DH!

DH is home! I picked him up at 2 pm. He spent another 5.5 days in the hospital and had almost 1 liter of fluid surgically removed from his left pleural sac (lung); he had a pleural effusion. He's tired and hurting, coughing some, and looks (truthfully) like he's been to hell & back. I'm just praying that this is the end of the nightmare we've been living since August 6. It's so good to have him home and our dog Honey (my avatar) is over the moon to have her dad back on the couch with her!

Thanks for all the support, everyone!

Caregiving: the heart cath procedure was no big deal; it was the open heart surgery to follow it that WAS! Yes, my DH was put on beta blockers and a blood thinner for 1 year afterward. We are still dealing with complications, but today is a good day, thank you!

How was the heart cath procedure? Any additional medication? Blood thinner?
I hope it went well.
Hugs and prayers.

Wonderful news, lealonnie. I am so happy your DH is doing so much better. Wishing all of you a Happy Thanksgiving. Hugs to you.

So good to know Lea, I agree about turning a corner, DH will be home soon and you two can rest together!

Heart healthy recipes can be a a new hobby for both of you, share the good ones 👍🏼 😋

The staff had DH cough this morning, did some sort of test, and determined the air leak has sealed UP on its own! Yay! He's talking like a magpie, no shortness of breath, and in fabulous spirits I haven't seen since before the open heart surgery on Oct 30th. They are keeping him until at least Monday; the chest tubes are still draining at a good pace and s/b for a while yet.

We had 2 good Duo phone visits last night & this morning, and it's almost as good as being there in real life. Except for the holding hands part and kissing his forehead.

Thanks for all the support, Ladies. You are the best! Piper, I'm doing well.........hanging in there & holding onto my dog Honey for warmth! I feel like we're turning a corner here so even I can breathe easier now. Thanks for asking.

Lea I'm glad the fluid has been drained and DH tolerated the procedure well. But I'm so sorry that this stress continues. I will definitely keep sending all good vibes to you and DH!

Keep us posted on the air leak and hopefully it resolves on it's own very soon. I'm glad you have DD to help here being a cardiac nurse.

I'm also glad your DH seems to have had a good attitude this whole time, and continues to have a sense of humor coming right out of the procedure, I'm sure he can't wait to see you.

Remember self care for you too Lea, are YOU holding up okay?

Sending you a big hug!

Lealonnie, I love your turn of phrase "humorously groggy"! Good wishes to you both. (((((Hugs)))).

Glad to see your DH is doing better. My thoughts and prayers sent to both of you.
Hope everything starts to settle and both of you get some well needed rest. Good night.

Prayers for healing for hubby, rest for you, and peace for all

So DH made it through the surgery; nearly 1 LITER of fluid was removed from the pleural sac surrounding his left lung! He tolerated the general anesthesia well, and came out of recovery & back into his room. He has a small air leak, however, which must be closely monitored now by xray to make sure it doesn't turn into a pneumothorax (collapsed or partially collapsed lung). We'll have to wait & see how this progresses, or, if it just resolves on its own. DD is there with him now & I spoke to him very briefly on the phone when he returned to his room; he was quite humorously groggy.

I would truly just like this whole nightmare to be OVER with now. It's kind of like a dream where I'm trying to wake up but can't seem to. Keep sending prayers/good thoughts our way, Ladies.

THANKS to all for everything; I appreciate it.

I am glad the problem was found rather quickly. Great his heart surgeon is with him. Happy your tests came back negative. What great news, lealonnie. Your poor DH has been through so much, I feel bad for him. Hopefully everything will settle and he will be on his way to better health. Prayers sent to both you and DH.

Aw, Lealonnie, what rotten luck! Poor guy must be miserable being back in the hospital. Please tell him that a whole bunch of internet strangers are rooting for him and send him good wishes and virtual bouquets!

Both sorry to hear hubby has to go through a surgery and grateful that the issue has been found as well as a path forward to deal with it. Prayers for all...

Well, it's worse than they thought; the fluid can't be drained off with a needle so he's been admitted; surgery has to be performed on Friday called VATS which is Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) is a minimally invasive surgical technique used to diagnose and treat problems in your chest. During a VATS procedure, a tiny camera (thoracoscope) and surgical instruments are inserted into your chest through one or more small incisions in your chest wall. The fluid will be drained that way & chest tubes inserted; he'll have to stay in the hospital for 3-4 days afterward. I feel so badly for him, I can't tell you

Lealonnie, so glad about the results on your test. So sorry hubby back in but relieved your DD took him to the ER and this will not get addressed. I think I did tell you I always test positive for a bit of microscopic occult blood in the urine. Decades really. Hasn't yet killed me.
thinking of you both.

Good thoughts and prayers winging his way, L!

My DH had a CT scan in the ER and he has a pleural effusion..........A buildup of fluid between the tissues that line the lungs and the chest.
Fluid can accumulate around the lungs due to poor pumping by the heart or by inflammation. It will need to be drained with a needle inserted between the ribs; he has one larger one on the left and a very small one on the right (which probably won't be drained). The draining is done under xray/radiology guidance; the good news is his heart surgeon is THERE right now! DD is waiting to hear if they will admit him or do it and then send him home.

I just KNEW something was 'off' last night...........and I'm relieved DD took him back to the ER.

Send prayers/good thoughts again please. This poor man has been through TOO MUCH over the past 3 months. He needs some long term recovery now, with God's help

That is great news Lealonnie!!!! Woo-hoo!!! You must be so relieved!

Any news on your hubby? Is he still at the hospital getting checking out?

My CT Scan results are in............nothing remarkable to report in the abdomen or the pelvic region! That's a relief!

The PCP still wants me to keep the Urology appointment on 11.27 as he may want to do a cystoscopy to look further into the bladder for issues that may exist. We'll see about that.

Sorry to hear about your husband. I am glad you have your DD for support. Praying everything turns out well and he continues on the road to a good recovery. Might be a little set back but he has a good cardiologist so he is in good hands. Thoughts and prayers sent your way. Hope you hear good news soon. Hugs.

Ugh! Sorry to hear the latest, and prayers with a big hug for good news soon!

Lealonnie (((((hugs))))) and good thoughts and prayers to you both!

So DH is off to the ER again with my daughter, who took the afternoon off work to drive him there. He's very short of breath (which has been getting worse daily) and the rib pain is worsening instead of improving. They need to check him for possible complications like a pneumothorax or fluid around the lung sacs/pneumonia etc. The cardiologist told us to go to Urgent Care which is a bad idea b/c with shortness of breath & coughing, they'll label him COVID and require him to sit with other covid symptomatic people. So DD called his heart surgeon directly who said Take Him To The ER. He may also need a blood transfusion for anemia, we don't know. This damn covid has just added SUCH a level of impossible stress and danger to an already bad situation, it's unbelievable.

My CT scan (abdomen & pelvis) was yesterday; no news yet.

Just an update; thanks to all who continue to pray/send good thoughts and for caring in general.

LeaLonnie; Great and wonderful news! Tell DH to keep up the good work from ALL of us here!

Lealonnie, you made me laugh. My friend, BL, who's hubby S. had triple bypass 5 years ago claims he has been movie star slender ever since, and the heart healthy diet has not done the same for her. Isn't it amazing all the bad stuff in things when you actually read it. Sugars, as well. They add it to EVERYTHING. So glad of the walk, and to hear how well this is going.

Great news, lealonnie. Thanks for keeping us updated. Think of you often.

Lealonnie, thanks for sharing such positive news!