Posted by Terry/sternum discomfort on September 27, 2002 at 21:38:47:
In Reply to: Question for Mazers posted by Terry Gann on September 27, 2002 at 09:55:01:
Terry: Perhaps we both got the same "bands", since I preceded you by one day at the CC. I have also had discomfort in my sternum, but had blamed it on the bad cough associated with a post nasal drip I developed over a week after my maze. I was sure my sternum would split from my coughing, until Dr. Hammer called late on my 12th night post-maze to "check on" me and assured me that it was OK.
Just a month ago I had a local thoracic surgeon tell me that my sternum "felt solid" and that it sometimes takes a couple of years for the discomfort to go away. I still feel soreness after sleeping, and when I get out of bed in the AM it is particularly sore. For some reason, the soreness almost completely disappeared for over a week a couple of months ago when I had a brief period of Aflutter and had to be cardioverted. It was like the shock "moved something around" and I would awake in the morning barely aware of this discomfort. The thoracic surgeon looked at me like I was crazy when I mentioned this "phenmomenon" and said to wait a few more months before I considered having any wires removed.
I might add that they took no X-rays of my chest, he just pushed hard on either side of my sternum and pronounced it "solid". Being in NSR except for this 36-48 hour spell 18-19 months post-maze, I am not complaining, just wishing that EVERY reminder of my afib days would vanish. (Jack Drum DID have his wires removed after 2 years.)
- Re: Question for Mazers Carl Plaskett 20:34:21 9/28/2002 (0)