Paul's Heart

Friday, April 18, 2008 – A New Beginning

*** note – this is the final installment of retelling the events around the 5th anniversary of my life-saving double bypass heart surgyer.

The last thing I remember, is the chatter of the operating room, “he’s so young for this.”

Coming out of anesthesia was a controlled effort by the part of the doctors.  I had no idea what to expect.  But before I forget, if you read yesterday’s post, as you can see, it is the most powerful thing that I have ever experienced and to actually read that my heart was stopped, and emptied of blood, is just chilling.  Though my body was on a machine, used to pump the blood throughout my body, I guess technically, I was “dead” at that time.  But for those who are curious, no, I did not have any out of body experience.  But reading the surgical report, I could imagine what it was like in that operating room.

As my eyes open in the intenstive care unit, I saw Wendy sitting in the corner of the dimly lit room.  There were no windows so I had no concept of date or time.  She called for my nurse, a young man named Joe who came in, prepared to deal with any pain or panic situation I may experience as I come to grips with what has happened to my body.  Most importantly, I AM ALIVE!!!  I MADE IT!!!

I get picked on quite a bit for the rank I place myself as far as care and concern.  Evidently, with an 8 inch incision on my chest, tubes coming out from everywhere of my body, machines beeping and blinking, I suddenly realized something.  I was supposed to DJ a wedding reception tomorrow morning.  Yes, I actually did that.  Besides being a totally inappropriate time to be worried about something like that, I had no way to communicate it.  I was intubated with an air tube helping me to breath for the time being, and my arms were too weak to move.  Wendy came over, grabbed my hand in care and comfort, and I pulled it away to get her attention, and then pointed my finger.  Not really sure what I was doing, she finally gathered that I was trying to spell out something.

“I was supposed to do a wedding.  Call the bride.  Number is ###-###-####.  Tell her I’m sorry.  Call this guy instead.  He may be able to help them out.”  The look on Wendy’s face was shock.  I’m laying in the ICU just recently out of open heart surgery, and this is the first thing that comes to mind.  Later that evening, Wendy made that call.  And I so appreciated the understanding couple who expressed concern for me.

Pain and discomfort were an initial issue and another dose of Fentanyl was adminstered, and back out I went.  But later, and like I said, with no concept of time or day, I awoke to Joe back in my room, Wendy had left.  He was just going over my vitals and checking out all of the equipment.  He asked if I was comfortable, and for just having had my breast bone cracked open just hours ago and connected to all kinds of machines and hoses, I was quite surprised how comfortable I was.

Just then a familiar face came into the room.  It was Heather, my nurse from the day before.  She came to visit me, while during her shift break,  after hearing that I had to have this procedure done.  Before yesterday, she was a complete stranger to me, and today, she had as much compassion and empathy as someone who had known me my whole life.

There is a saying about being in the wrong place at the wrong time, and at that exact moment, Joe came back in, wanting to get me cleaned up from earlier in the day.  So Joe ended up recruiting Heather.  I was in no condition to protest.  And not that there is anything wrong with, was a little more comfortable having someone as easy on the eyes as Heather to take care of me (though for a dude, Joe had some good looks as well).

Joe had informed me of upcoming plans to get me out of the bed in the next few hours.  He went through a long list of things that I had to prepare for when this time came, such as carrying around all the extra tubing, IV lines, wires, etc..  The purpose was to just get me out of the bed and sitting.  I thought, “HOLY SHIT!!!  I just had my heart operated on a few hours ago and they are not even going to let me rest!”

If you are wondering what it feels like to have this type of operation, let me remind you.  Just days before, I had been spending over an hour on the eliptical machine (a stepper/walking machine) followed by another 45 minutes weightlifting in the gym.  This had gone on for months.  Obviously I was in shape, no?

Just sitting up, was exhausting for me.  How could this be?  I did not have anything else done with my body, my legs, my arms.  Okay, so my chest was opened, but how could I be so weak?

Like I said, I had no concept of time, but the time did come, I believe the next day, that I was moved to a private from the intensive care unit.  But here was the catch.  I was told that I would do it under my own power.  I do no think that the nurses expected me to do what I did, but I was determined.  Just the day following my open heart surgery, I walked what amounted to the length of a football field between two floors, with a wheelchair behind me to allow me the opportunity to rest, which I did not take.  It was a walk that I could make just days before, with ease.

I made it to my new room.  And I was exhausted.  Over the next couple of days, I was encouraged to walk.  But on the day after my arrival to my private room, I was found walking the stairways.  You would have thought that the staff would be happy to see my progress.  Not exactly.  But the bar had been set.  Physically I was well on my way to recovery.

But on my second to last day in the hospital, I found out that I was a long way from recovering emotionally.  It was early in the morning, and a group of people had come into my room:  caseworker, finance, physical therapy, occupation therapy, and clergy.

Up until this point in my life, I had done a very good job of controlling my emotions.  But after just a few words by the clergy, I lost it.  I fell apart.  I could not handle all of the care I was receiving.  It was not about believing in a higher power, which I do, but rather dealing with the fact, that I had now survived my second life and death experience.

I was reminded just one day at home from the hospital.  Wendy had stayed with me for the first week at home while I recovered.  While watching television, a story line in her soap opera had a character having open heart surgery.  It was too overwhelming and definitely too soon.  Again, I had lost it.  Wendy had not realized how sensitive I had become.

It has been five years for an anniversary I never thought I would have to see or ever thought I would.  Initially, I wondered just how long the bypasses would hold.  I no longer do that as I have realized, just as I once lived, much easier not to worry or obsess about it.  I would miss so much.

So here ends how my life changed a second time.

Friday, April 18, 2008 – Saving A Life

*** please note – the following is the actual transcript of my emergency life saving double bypass surgery.  While fascinating, for some who have gone through this procedure, or know someone who has, this may be too intense of a post.  Please do not read this if this is the case.

My purpose for this, today is the 5th anniversary of my double bypass.  I read the transcript five years ago.  It is fascinating and amazing the efforts that went into saving my life.

Patient was brought to the operating room and identified as Mr. Edelman.  After routine lines were places and hemodynamic monitoring, general anesthesia was achieved via endotracheal tube, prophylactic antibiotics were administered, and the patient was prepped and draped in routine fashion for open heart surgery.

A median sternotomy incision was made.  With the sternum divided the left internal mammary artery was able to be harvested on a pedicle from the sixth intercostal space up to its origin above the first rib.  Topical Papaverine was placed at the mammary artery pedicle.  Standard self-retaining retractor was placed.  The anterior pericardium was opened and reflected anteriorly.  Simultaneous to this portion of the procedure a segment of saphenous vein was harvested from the left lower extremity in its mid portion and evaluated for use as a bypass conduit.  It was adequate at 4mm internal diameter.

Epiaortic ultrasound of the ascending aorta was normal.  Heparin was given to create systemic anticoagulation with an activated clotting time greater than 450 second.  This was achieved.  We harvested the distal portion of the mammary artery with excellent flow.  I made a slit in the pericardium anterior to the phrenic nerve on the left side of the pericardium, and measured the mammary artery for proper length and rotation for bypass to the proximal LAD.  We still had ample length almost 2cm beyond this area of the mammary artery and on measuring the distance from the obtuse marginal to the pericardial slit there was ample room to use the mammary artery in a Y graft fashion to the obtuse marginal.

In an effort to give arterial graft to this young gentleman we then sewed the mammary artery in a Y graft fashion dividing the mammary artery at the junction between the mid and distal third of the mammary artery where it would be placed to the LAD without tension and sewing that in end-to-side to the mammary artery where it comes through the slit in the pericardium anterior to the phrenic nerve on the left side.  This was done with running 8-0 Prolene suture.  We completed the anastomosis and removed the atraumatic vascular clamp from the Y graft with excellent flow down both grafts with the Y anastomosis hemostatic.

It was treated with topical Papaverine.  Standard cannulation took place with an arterial inflow cannula in the ascending aorta, atriocaval cannula in the right atrium, a cardioplegia delivery cannula in the ascending aorta, retrograde cardioplegia cannula in the right atrium of the coronary sinus.  The patient was placed on bypass, cooled, and emptied.  With the heart emptied, a crossclamp was placed and 1 liter of antegrade cardioplegia solution was given through the catheter in the ascending aorta.  The heart became asystolic.

We then switched the patient over to retrograde cardioplegia delivery through the coronary sinus catheter utilizing the catheter in the ascending aorto to vent the left ventricle.  With no cardioplegia running and the heart well vented and decompressed we placed on branch of the mammary artery end-to-side to the obtuse marginal with running 8-0 Prolene suture.  We completed the anastomosis, initiated retrograde cardioplegia delivery, and removed atraumatic vascular clamp from the mammary artery pedicle finding the anastmosis to be hemostatic.

We placed back the atraumatic vascular clamp on the mammary artery pedicle, opened the LAD in its proximal segment, and placed the mammary artery end-to-side to this vessel running 8-0 Prolene suture.  Completing the anastomosis, we tacked down the mammary artery pedicle to the epicardium with two 6-0 Prolene suture to the circumflex system on its inferior side.

Hot shot of warm oxygenated blood cardioplegia solution was given.  We completed the two anastmoses.

With this done, the patient was placed in the Trendelenburg position.  A Valsalva maneuver was performed.  The heart was allowed to fill and the aortic crossclamp was cracked and released, de-airing the patient’s heart through the cardioplegia delivery site in the ascending aorta, keeping it under gentle suction.  The heart fibrulated at this time and was cardioverted to an idioventricular rhythm.  We placed left and 2 mediastinal chest tubes as well as two atrial and two ventricular pacing wires, slowly weaning the patient from bypass without complications in sinus rhythm on no inotropic support.  Off bypass, we found excellent indices with an EKG which showed no evidence of ischemia.  After all pump blood was reinfused, we decannulated the patient in routine fashion., oversewed all cannulation sites, and gave Protamine for systemic anticoagulation.  I inspected the Y graft.  The anastomoses were found to be hemostatic and cannulation sites finding them to be hemostatic.  I closed the pericardium loosely to mediastinal tissues, rewired the sternum, and closed the wound in routine fashion after all layers were irrigated with antibiotic solution.  The lower extremity for harvest of the saphenous vein graft conduit for bypass with endoscopic technique was closed in routine fashion.  The patient tolerated the procedure well and brought to the Open Heart Unit in stable condition in sinus rhythm on no inotropic support.  No blood was given during the operative procedure.

Thank you Dr. Phillips and everyone who saved my life 5 years ago.

Thursday, April 17, 2018

*** note – the following is a re-telling of the events leading up to my double bypass surgery, approaching my fifth anniversary, tomorrow.

It was a long overnight.  I could not sleep at all.  It had been nearly eighteen years since the last time I had seen an operating room.

Wendy’s sister had come by the house  as she would sit with Wendy in the waiting room while I had catheterization to place a stint, or stints where my cardiologist felt there were blockages.  He would go up through the vein in my groin.

We arrived at the hospital and I was greeted by Heather, my nurse, and soon joined by two others.  They were all so nice.  Evidently I was giving off quite a bit of fear.  I got changed into the wonderful hospital garb, and then another one of those blasted catheter lines was inserted.

My gourney was then rolled to a holding area, where I met my anesthesiologist as well as Dr. S my cardiologist.  I made my final pleas to everyone.  “I had cancer.  I had radiation and chemotherapy.  I have no spleen.  I just needed you to know that.”  I have no idea why these comments rolled off of my tongue at that particular moment.

That is all I remember of that moment.  The next thing I remember is silly, sad, and serious.

Dr. S:  We got in with the catheter and we found the blockage.  Unfortunately, it is clear that your husband had some lasting side effects from the radiation he was exposed to.  We were not able to stint.  There is a major blockage of the LAD along with two other blockages.

Just then, a friend who had stopped by to visit me, offered her commentary.

Friend:  Oh my God, it’s a widowmaker!

Dr. S.:  Well, yes, we don’t usually like to call it that, but yes, that is what it is.

Me:  Widowmaker?  What?

Dr. S.:  We have Paul set up for emergency triple bypass tomorrow morning at 6:30am.

Me:  Bypass?  Bypass?!?  Bye Bye.  Bypass.

Yes, I was still coming out of the anesthesia.  That is all I made out.  Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Wendy sink, just collapse as if her skeleton had been removed from her body.

The next five hours were just a blur.  I know I had gotten up to walk a little as I was encouraged to do.  Although my left leg had begun to swell at the insertion point from the catheterization.  It was 8:00 when I finally realized what was going to happen.  I still had not eaten, and I was going to be fasted in four hours.

But now, an orderly was in my room to take me for pre-surgical tests:  echocardiogram, EKG, and an ultrasound on my legs, to find what vein to harvest for the bypass.  I was returned back to my room around 11:00pm.  I could not sleep at all.

The next few hours, I would have several visitors stop by, encouraging me to sleep.  One visitor, who happened to resemble Michael Clark Duncan in shape and appearance, came into my room at 3:00am, to “prep” me.  So now, the most uncomfortable moment with a razor was going to be a new moment.

At 4:00am, I rang for my nurse.

Me:  Is it possible for me to be taken down to the chapel?  I have a few things I would like to take care of.

Nurse:  Really?  You need to do it now?  They are probably going to come for you in the next hour or so.

And so, the nurse rolled me downstairs to the chapel.

When I came back to my room, “Michael Clarke Duncan” was waiting for me.  It was time.