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Had to go to ER on Fri - I have a P.E.

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  • Had to go to ER on Fri - I have a P.E.

    Howdy! Just when I thought recovery was sailing along nicely, I wound up in the hospital.

    I learned Friday that my breathing pain was a pulmonary embolism (PE, aka a blood clot in lung). I also show signs of fluid in my pleural lining. I was admitted to the hospital Friday, and was released this afternoon (Sunday). I will follow up with additional testing on Monday, but on an outpatient basis.

    The thing that scares me most: being on the anticoagulants lovenox, heparin, and coumedin. My surgeon made it clear to me that I was not to even have an aspirin or ibuprofen while healing, as we need the fusion area to clot in order to heal properly. Now that I am on thinners, I fear the impact this will have on my fusion and healing. Does anyone have any experience with being on these meds post op? For how long? Did it prohibit fusing at all, and if so, how did you handle?

    Side note: my surgeon was paged by ER to consult with him prior to putting me on heparin. He said ok, since it was more imminently important to control the PE than to worry about my back. But that is the short term approach. With my clotting history and having theblood clotting disorder, it has been brought up that this event may be the one that makes me have to stay on antioagulant drugs for life. ERGH. I am so scared. I will call the surgeon office tomorrow to make sure he coordinates with my PCP in managing this, but it would really make me feel better if I could hear some more input from people on here as to whether others have had similar issues.

    I have gone from a happy go lucky healer, to pretty high anxiety this past week.
    Meg is Spinewhine
    31 years old with thoracic curve
    Wore Boston brace as teenager, but curve continued to progress.
    Surgery on 12/13/2005 with correction from over 55 degrees to under 25 degrees. (Ya baby!)

    The nitty gritty at:
    http://spinewhine.blogspot.com/

  • #2
    Meg,
    I was so sorry to hear of your scary weekend.. Thank god you are back home tonight. I never heard you mention any breathing problem on your blog.. but I guess it came on fairly suddenly?? I can't provide answers to your questions, though I'm sure someone here can. You are in my thoughts...Lynne http://lynnebackattack.blogspot.com

    Comment


    • #3
      Well, I didn't think I *had* a breathing problem - It was intermittent, and I always attributed it to gas, or muscular, or just basic pain related to my body recovering. But, the pain bcoming sharp and directly associated with breathing was certainly more of a sudden onset thing. (Although I think the problem has been there for quite some time, just perhaps not to the same extent.)
      Meg is Spinewhine
      31 years old with thoracic curve
      Wore Boston brace as teenager, but curve continued to progress.
      Surgery on 12/13/2005 with correction from over 55 degrees to under 25 degrees. (Ya baby!)

      The nitty gritty at:
      http://spinewhine.blogspot.com/

      Comment


      • #4
        clot

        I did not have an embolism--a moving clot- but I had a small clot in my calf which was picked up by the routine screening my doctor does on all his spine patients post-op. After a week, when I went to a rehab hospital, I was put on Coumadin- a pill blood thinner for about 6 weeks.
        My fusion healed beautifully.

        Karen
        Original scoliosis surgery 1956 T-4 to L-2 ~100 degree thoracic (triple)curves at age 14. NO hardware-lost correction.
        Anterior/posterior revision T-4 to Sacrum in 2002, age 60, by Dr. Boachie-Adjei @Hospital for Special Surgery, NY = 50% correction

        Comment


        • #5
          Meg...

          I was worried that you might have a P.E. (didn't want to worry you over much, which is why I encouraged you to get word to your doctor), so am really glad you got to the ER, and know that you'll be fine now.

          Regards,
          Linda
          Never argue with an idiot. They always drag you down to their level, and then they beat you with experience. --Twain
          ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
          Surgery 2/10/93 A/P fusion T4-L3
          Surgery 1/20/11 A/P fusion L2-sacrum w/pelvic fixation

          Comment


          • #6
            In all honesty, I would be more worried about the clots than the fusion. If you dont take the thinners you could die. If you do the worst thing that would happen would be to lose your fusion. I am happy to hear that you went to the ER for this. It sounds like you had quite a weekend. Let us know what your surgeon and PCP decide. I will be praying for you.
            Mandy

            Comment


            • #7
              Meg,

              Wow, what an ordeal you've had to go through. I too, hope all goes well. Please keep us updated.

              You're in my prayers,
              Shari

              Comment


              • #8
                Meg,

                Oh my I hope that you will be ok. When I saw your comment on my post I read this and it sounds pretty scary. Thank god you went to the ER in time.

                What were your symptoms? I'm a little freaked out myself today, I'm still having a very hard time breating today and my heart rate is getting pretty rapid. Haven't called the doc yet, but I think I'm about to right now.

                I will keep you in my prayers! Please keep us posted on how you are doing.
                shelly
                Shelly
                Anterior Spinal Fusion and titanium rod and screws inserted to correct 45 degree thoracolumbar curve from T12 - L4 on 1/4/06.

                Comment


                • #9
                  So far so good... I am getting a doppler done on Tuesday, and going to follow up with the lung specialist too.

                  My Surgeon called me this morning to see how I was doing and he made me feel a lot better about being on the thinners, and reassured me that my fusion was far enough along that it won't be an issue, and bleeding in the spinal column isn't a threat either. I also got a call from one of his nurses. Gosh, I love personal service and follow-up. I really like my doc.

                  The Lung specialist wants to personally review my spiral CT results, as he thinks it my not even be a PE, so we'll see. I am praying that it isn't, as there has been some mention that I should be on coumedin for life, do to my clotting disorder and track record with throwing clots. I am fighting that one, I don't want to live as human pin cushion forever.

                  I'll post more when I know more, but that is it on the PE front for now.
                  Meg is Spinewhine
                  31 years old with thoracic curve
                  Wore Boston brace as teenager, but curve continued to progress.
                  Surgery on 12/13/2005 with correction from over 55 degrees to under 25 degrees. (Ya baby!)

                  The nitty gritty at:
                  http://spinewhine.blogspot.com/

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    My prayers are with you, also. I'm so sorry you are going through this. Linda

                    Comment

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