Big Medical Happenings...

Yesterday, we went up to the new vascular surgeon in Idaho Falls, which is about 3 hours away from here. Anyway, after visiting him, he had us go over to the local hospital and we had a CT scan. After that, we came back home.

Then, this morning we got a call from the doctor. He said that he had looked at the CT pictures and that the left leg part of the aortic aneurysm stent has become unconnected from the stent and that is what is causing the blood flow problem.

I guess the stent is like a pair of pants. The left leg cut off as they put the
'pants' minus the left leg, in through the right artery and then once that is done, they put in the left 'pant' let in through the left leg artery and then attach the left leg part to the main stent.

So, the left let part of the stent has somehow come loose and must be fixed. The whole point of putting in the stent, is to protect the aortic wall material from blowing up by keeping all of the blood pressure inside of the stent. So, without the left leg part there, and having a big hole there where the left leg part is suppose to attach, the whole stent purpose is compromised and I am liable to have it blow as I was before any of this started two years ago.

Anyway, the new surgeon is going to fix it all this Friday. He is going to go in through my arm and leg and fix the stent problem and whatever else is not right - or at least that is the plan as I understand it.

I find it amazing that there are tools available that can be taken through the arteries and once they are where they need to be, have the capability to do the complex tasks required to complete the job at hand. I will have no open wounds except for a small hole in my arm and leg. And, I am schedules to be discharged on Saturday morning.

In the past, each operation resulted in at least one 'wound' that would have to go through a 2 week or more healing treatment requiring drainage of the liquids from it, clean it multiple times a day, keep it dressed properly and all sorts of hassles and pain dealing with it.

The next post will probably be after I return from having the operation. I sincerely hope that all will go as planned and I do not get any staph infection as in the past.