Having Rotator Cuff Surgery After Heart Attack

I'm scared...this is the first time I will be having any sort of surgery after my heart attack 4 1/2 years ago. Up to this point, my heart was the only thing I worried about. Now, I have a torn rotator cuff in my right arm and spurs that have to be removed in the same shoulder. We are looking at surgery some time this fall. That means 4-5 hours of anesthesia while under the knife. I will be on disability from work for 2 months, then about 4 months of physical therapy. My exercise workout will change since I won't be able to run on the treadmill with my arm in a sling for fear of falling and not being able to hold on to the handles. My cardiologist tells me not to worry, that my heart can withstand the anesthesia and that I will have to go off my asprin for 2 weeks prior to surgery. I will have an EKG just before surgery for safety sake, but I am still concerned. I know there are many people out there that have a heart condition and still have surgeries but I am still afraid. Anyone been in this boat before? Sometimes I think I am over-reacting.

By lkay
Posted September 4, 2008 at 9:09 pm

Hi GirlScoutPam,

My cabg x4 husband had hip replacement surgery 4 years after his open heart surgery. They did a few extra precautionary ekg's on him and spent more time reviewing his medical history than normal. He also self-donated blood in case it would be needed (it wasn't and he is B neg, pretty rare). You might want to discuss that with your doctors as well.

It is better that the surgeons know your heart history in advance than be surprised by a patient having problems on the table. Lots of times the first indication someone have heart trouble is during a procedure with anasthesia.

If your cardio says you're good for surgery and the recovery, its a big leap of faith to take, but it must be true! :-)Try to relax and think how much better your shoulder will feel after this is done.

My best,
Laura

By martzj
Posted September 4, 2008 at 9:13 pm

Hi,

I had knee surgery, (torn miniscus, artritic bone spurs, shredded ligaments that had to be reattached) about 8 years out from acute MI. Surgery went like clockwork, no problems......Even drove a stick shift day 7 to get to the drug store (lived alone at the time).
Glad you are getting 2 months off....I got 10 days.
About 11 weeks before knee surgery I had a partial hysterectomy....also went very well. Both surgeries were soooo beneficial to my long term quality of life. My heart has considerable scar tissue and still did just fine. Also, keep in mind.....your surgery will be fully equipped with crash cart, defib.....If your heart stops for a second they can get it going right away.

Best of luck to you......I hope you will have a much better time of it once the surgery heals (smile).

Jaynie

By DiStacy1
Posted September 4, 2008 at 11:08 pm

I also had surgery to remove my gall bladder 6 years after my first heart attack and all was fine, there were no problems at all. I also just had an appendectomy 2 weeks ago, which is 9 years after my 2nd heart attack and my heart did just fine with that also. It is understandable to be scared or nervous, any time you need surgery for something, it does tend to make you stop and wonder. One thing my cardiologist just told me is that being a scheduled surgery as opposed to an emergency surgery lowers the risk of anything happening. I hope all goes well with your surgery and recovery, just remember to listen to your body when it says to slow down, you slow down, do not push it to the limit and then regret it because of exhaustion and/or pain.

Best of luck,

Diane

By arizona1
Posted September 5, 2008 at 4:19 am

A friend of mine (basketball coach) just dislocated his shoulder a few months ago in a fall. He told me that during this ordeal, his specialist noted that he had a torn rotator cuff and wanted to do surgery on it. He tells me that this is one surgery you do NOT want to have unless you absolutely have to. ( Meaning until the pain gets so bad) He said that he dealt with the rotator cuffs tears ( both of them years ago ) by just letting them heal and with exercises. He refused the present rotator surgery because he has no pain, even though there are tears. Only you know if the pain is so unbearable that you need to have the surgery. Ironically, he just mentioned this whole story to me on Monday. Funny you would bring it up.

Kathi

By martzj
Posted September 5, 2008 at 3:41 pm

Kathi & girlscoutpam
,
I had slight tears to both shoulder rotator cuffs when my shoulders began sub-luxing at 49 (partially dislocating) during nights while I was asleep. Probably a combo of perimenopause hormonal shifting + Elhers-Danlos syndrome III, inherited genetic connective tissue disorder. The pain was extreme but I took it to the pool and carefully worked arms under the water....over time I could raise them higher and higher. And darned if they didn't mostly self repair. The knee tears were too damaged to self repair so I had surgery....shoulders I am happy I held off on. It took months though and I could only wash my hair with one arm for a long time.

Jaynie

By arizona1
Posted September 5, 2008 at 3:48 pm

Looks like my friend isn't the only one to recoop from this problem on their own. Jaynie, thanks for confirming my thoughts. I am so glad that you were able to do the same. Looks like you saved yourself major pain and recovery time. My friend said the specialist agreed with his refusal to undergo the surgery on his next visit.

Kathi

By martzj
Posted September 5, 2008 at 4:51 pm

Kathi,

There is an even more bizarre twist to this tale. The dr who did my knee surgery & hip/spine (he wants to do surgeries and I am deferring that for the time being) in a partner in the sports med practice with the shoulder doc.

Shoulder doc told me "ooooh, we don't like Ehlers-
Danlos patients...your tendons stretch like rubber bands and you would just keep coming back for surgeries, so I don't treat ELD people. I am giving you a diagnosis of BENIGN NEGLECT." Yep, that is a condoned medical diagnosis that he was paid $150 to offer me. I asked him if there was some sort of stretch ACE bandage type shoulder brace to help with the night time subluxing in my sleep? "No, nothing." He actually said that. I went straight home, went on-line and found tons of arm/shoulder braces for sports injury/repair. Good grief!!! This doc was in his 60s and clearly isn't aware patients are very savvy now and can go on-line immediately after diagnosis.

Very bizarre that the younger knee & spine doc had an entirely different attitude within the same practice. It was a big learning experience for me......That docs can basically do and say whatever they wish. Treat or not treat. I hadn't gone looking for a surgical option in the first place, just some help with trying to understand what the heck was going on with my body subluxing all over the place. I was sent home with zero info, just a billing receipt. THis doc had 3 nurse assistants in the exam room with us....also really weird. I have been wondering if he had some lawsuits pending against him? Or was under some sort of probation...but still allowed to practice. It has been 3 years but that has always been the most odd, mysterious exam ever! And ideas on what was going on there?

Have you been able to walk since you got back home? Work a little in your flowers?

Take good care,
Jaynie

By arizona1
Posted September 5, 2008 at 8:04 pm

Jaynie, as you know ....... operations= $$$$$$$
rotator cuff is $30,000.

Sounds like the older doc doesn't need the money and was a bit more honest, despite not knowing about the arm braces. I never heard of benign neglect before, but if he spared you from operations and pain for something that wouldn't be permanent, at least he did that. The younger doc may need money and wants operations. Three nursing assistants would raise some eyebrows!!!!

If you want to know about doctors and their past performance you can learn alot by digging. One place I went to first, and then found links from there was www.ratemd.com. I ended up finding that my CFS doc was on probation and the center did not know about it. Everything I learned was free, despite all the offers to pay for reports. I even got his whole history for free from the licensing department. I came this close to filing against his license. They told me he would have lost it for sure because he was already on probation. I considered it and then abandoned my plans. I didn't want to focus my limited energy on negative actions. That went for the law suit as well.

Now that I am home, I am again doing way too much. That is the reason I have been doing very limited postings. Not enough energy to go around.

My friends did a wonderful job of taking care of my plants. One neighbor loved my deck with flowers and plants so much that when she was finished watering...... she just sat and collected her thoughts. She said her husband came looking for her because he wondered what happened to her. I have a canopy of trees over my deck that keeps the deck shaded. At night you look up and see the stars poking between the branches. Below the deck is my huge shade garden with a stone path that I built from rocks that I collected on the hillside. There is a concrete bench just in front of the fern grouping. I have hostas all around. It is like a resort according to my neighbor. Peaceful and relaxing ............ and I missed it.

Kathi

By martzj
Posted September 5, 2008 at 8:39 pm

Kathi,

I thought so......Your posts haven't been as high energy. Nice that you are enjoying being back in your lovely deck garden....sounds charming to me.

"Three nursing assistants would raise some eyebrows!!!!

If you want to know about doctors and their past performance you can learn alot by digging. One place I went to first, and then found links from there was www.ratemd.com. I ended up finding that my CFS doc was on probation and the center did not know about it. Everything I learned was free, despite all the offers to pay for reports. I even got his whole history for free from the licensing department. I came this close to filing against his license. They told me he would have lost it for sure because he was already on probation. I considered it and then abandoned my plans. I didn't want to focus my limited energy on negative actions. That went for the law suit as well. "

I did run several background checks on the latest neurologist my cardio randomly picked from the phone book for referral. That was also quite the eerie initial exam...didn't even have me do standing balance checks, very sloppy. I've had so many over the years I know the neuro exam backwards and forewards and this guy was the pits. But I was there to get access to neck and brain MRI and got those!

I now run background checks on new drs......after reading several articles about the growing trend in doctors being the largest drug abuse population because they can write their own scrips, have access, etc. Sorry to read they also have a very high rate of suicide too. I do medical board, disciplinary checks and then run a criminal background.......found one dr with DWIs, repeated stops, driving w/o license.

Like you, I chose to forego filing against the licenses of at least 4 of the physicians who kept schlepping me around until I had acute MI. I was so desperately ill for so long and had no energy to stay in relationships that further drained me, so I was alone through all that. I will put my energies to never turning away from what I know to be wrong now......always speak up, always quietly challenge for clarity and proof of anything that has an effect on my quality of life.

3 female nurses in an exam where there was no pelvic? I strongly suspect this dr had been accused of manhandling patients or by a patient. He was very rough, brusque, tried to yank my arms out of the sockets (I just read in a medical journal that is a big no no for EDS patients). egads! : ) I refused followups w him.

Have a gentle weekend. I know how fragile CFS can make a girl feel. Some days I could swear I am made of air.......

Jaynie

By arizona1
Posted September 5, 2008 at 10:15 pm

Jaynie,

I now run background checks on new drs......after reading several articles about the growing trend in doctors being the largest drug abuse population because they can write their own scrips, have access, etc. Sorry to read they also have a very high rate of suicide too. I do medical board, disciplinary checks and then run a criminal background.......found one dr with DWIs, repeated stops, driving w/o license.

This is great advice.......worth a bit of money to find out all you did. I certainly will take this into consideration in the future.

Have a good weekend,
Kathi

By Bonnie59
Posted September 6, 2008 at 2:18 pm

Hi Girl Scout Pam,
I too had rotator cuff surgery after coronary bypass surgery. I was scheduled for the surgery and went to my cardio for an okay from him to have the the rotator cuff surgery performed. He decided to do a nuclear scan beforehand. Boy am I ever glad he did this precautionary test. It was discovered I had another major block that he was unable to stent, so, ended up with open heart instead of the rotator cuff repair. My shoulder hurt so bad after the open heart I think it took my mind off the chest wound. I had the rotator cuff repair 5 months after open heart. Anyway, my recommendation to you, have a nuclear scan before the cuff repair to make certain your heart is okay, then have the shoulder repaired. I know the pain you are in from the shoulder, you won't be sorry you had the repair done. Good luck!

By girlscoutpam
Posted September 7, 2008 at 6:33 pm

Thank you all for your replies. Bonnie, I just had a nuclear scan a couple of months age. In fact, I get one every year since my HA. I did not have any blockages, even after my HA since it was a vaso-spasm. I didn't need a stent but do have 20% permanent damage. However, the pain in the rotator has been going on for 6 months now. I had 2 MRI's showing just how bad it is. I swore I would not have this surgery since I heard how long the recuperation took, but I absolutely cannot go through this intense pain much longer. It has radiated from the neck to the shoulder and down the arm. It is my dominant arm so it affects everything. I will be in a sling for 6 weeks...how will I blow dry my hair??!! More importantly, I just want to have a good night sleep...soon! I will have my EKG by my cardio and hope he still gives me the go-ahead. I see the orthopaedic surgeon this Friday, Sept. 13th for the acutal surgery date. Thanks to all for your good wishes.

By cheffa
Posted September 7, 2008 at 9:06 pm

Hi,

I had very same surgery, came through it just great. I had to be off my Plavix for 21 days, but my cardiologist, gave me good check up before the surgery. I am 68 years young, and so you can do it, think positive.

By girlscoutpam
Posted September 13, 2008 at 4:39 pm

Okay ladies, my surgery is scheduled for Tuesday, October 21st. I am nervous but looking forward to being pain free and having a good nights sleep! I will be home from work for 2 months...guess I will be reading lots and lots. Hope I can peck here and there with my left hand on the computer to read all your great posts and comments. Thanks again for all the support here. You are the greatest!

By heartgoddess
Posted September 14, 2008 at 6:13 pm

One year after my MI and 4X bypass, my appendix burst. I was really scared, but had no choice. When I told the surgeon I was afraid, he said it was a good thing it happened AFTER my heart surgery, that I probably would not have survived it before! They will do a complete workup on you before allowing you to have the surgery. I know it is scary, but you will be fine.

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