Callie typing for Dave...he can type at about 2 words a minute right now. :)
I have to admit, after seeing probably 75 various surgeries over the course of my 14 years in the medical device industry, I was fairly nervous going in for this, my first surgery.... I've seen a fair amount of unprofessional behavior and lackluster skill levels in various ORs throughout the country. So some of these thoughts were running around my brain as I contemplated my surgery.
Upon seeing that after some time, my bicep in my right arm just wasn't working, I knew something had to be done. Instead of a 'stand up' bicep when flexed, it just hung to the front of my arm. My anxiety was reduced since my hand/arm specialist orthopod gets great reviews and has performed distal biceps tendon reattachment many times in his career. He was confident that he would be able to fix me up with a nice strong reattachment.
Time is of the essence in this repair surgery as the longer one waits the more difficult it is to retrieve and reattach the severed biceps tendon. So, the whole thing was on the fast track once the doc reviewed the MRIs.
In the two screen shots of the MRI scans, I believe you can see the severed biceps tendon. In general, the portions of anatomy that show white on the scans is either swelling or traumatized tissue.
I received my diagnosis Saturday morning. The surgeon performs surgery only on Tuesdays and Fridays. I was in his office early Monday and surgery was scheduled for the next day. Early Tuesday morning I drove to DIA (aka DEN) to pick up Callie who flew back early from the KCMO area where she was attending her grandma's funeral.
We drove straight to the hospital where my status as a 50 year old required me to have an EKG for my surgery. I guess they wanted to make sure my ticker worked. The EKG actually showed to be abnormal - but only because my resting heart rate is 42 which is not common for a 50 year old. It is not uncommon for a fit person though so I was cleared for surgery.
After the EKG, we went to the surgery center to drop of the EKG. To my surprise I was quickly admitted for pre-op. Before I knew it, I was in well-ventilated hospital gown and the nurse was working hard to get the compression hose onto my frog legs. Surgery was happening then, not at 3:15pm as originally scheduled.
Callie interjects: DAVE WAS WEARING A DRESS AND HOSE!!! HAAHAHA. Dave back dictating now. Sheesh.
After a short initial wait, a nurse came in and got me set up on an IV drip, shaved my arm, and reviewed medical history/information. Callie and I then waited for my turn with the surgeon.
A little while later the man with the happy juice showed up, asked me a few questions, then squirted a syringe full of something good in my IV. They wheeled me toward the the OR. That is my last memory pre-surgery.Next thing I knew I woke with a foggy head and a hell of a sore arm. The nurse worked with me to get the right pain meds in my system. My head started to clear a bit and Callie was allowed back to the post-op area.
From what Callie tells me, I repeated the same questions a number of times until I must have been satisfied with the answers. I obviously was most concerned about whether they had to take tendon from my leg (they didn't) and if they paralyzed me for the surgery (they did). After a couple of jellos, a lot of graham crackers, and several cups of juice, I was beginning to feel almost normal. Since I tolerated food and drink well, it was time for my first two percocets and shortly thereafter I got dressed with the help of my live-in nurse. Then I got wheeled out to the car. The recovery had officially begun.
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