Questions regarding Surgery?
Question by That Gay Guy: Questions regarding Surgery?
Tomorrow, I have back-to-back ENT (Ear, Nose, and Throat doctor) and sleep doctor appointments and examinations. We have a strong family history of sleep apnea and I can pretty much guarantee I have it–I snore very loudly even after having surgery to remove my adenoids and I wake up several times a night because I stop breathing.
As is common with sleep apnea, there are generally two methods used to treat it, and I predict that the doctor will give me these same options (as is commonplace). I can either use a CPAP machine (one is pictured here: http://www.smart-kit.com/wp-content/uploads/2006/12/cpap%20mayo.jpg ) at night for the rest of my life, or I can have my tonsils removed and if that doesn’t work, use a CPAP for the rest of my life to help me breathe better at night. I would rather have the surgery to remove my tonsils to try to “fix” me, and if that doesn’t work THEN go to the machine instead of going straight to the machine and not “fixing” me.
The problem is that I do not do well with surgery. I have had surgery twice before (heart surgery as an infant to repair a hole in my tricuspid valve, and adenoidectomy at 6), and both times I have nearly died. When I’m on the anesthetic, my body will crash and it is hard to get me back, and it takes me a long time to wake up from the anesthesia (general, so I’m out cold). It’s risky. What should I do? I’m not making my decision yet, and I still have to go for more exams first, so it’s not an immediate issue. I would just like input from y’all about what to do, what questions to ask tomorrow, and if it could potentially be worth the risks.
I had my first surgery on October 19, 1991 (I was just over 6 months old), and had my second surgery (adenoidectomy) on Dec. 19, 1997. It’s been nearly 11 years, but anesthesia hasn’t really come all that far, or at least not far enough. It’s my body that has the problem with it.
And if it helps, the ENT I am going to is the same one that I saw before my adenoidectomy back in the 1990s, and he’s the one who operated on me.
Best answer:
Answer by A W
Well, I have heard of people having a tonsillectomy with local anaesthetic, rather than general. Depending on how old you are now, there might have been enough progress in anaesthetics that you won’t have as many problems this go around. There are different types of meds. Also, nowadays, patients are kept under for a much shorter period of time and are monitored much more closely. I would certainly tell the docs about your previous problems; I am assuming that they will have you evaluated by a pulmonary doctor …
Good luck – my husband had his tonsils removed when he was in his 40′s and he helped him a lot (he used to get sick quite often)
Since you are a high risk patient for anesthesia complications, I’d suggest that you get your tonsils removed at a large medical center/university hospital. There you have the cutting edge of both anesthesia and surgery concentrated in one place.
Now, you didn’t say how old you are now, but if you are at least 10 years older or more, than when you had your problems, I hope that you have grown out of it…not saying that you did, just hoping. Anesthesia is much easier on a sturdy adult than a very ill young infant or a 6 yr old child.
Anesthesia has changed a great deal in the last five years, the last 10 years, etc. There are a variety of different medications and new types of gases that are easier to work with. I’ve been in the OR since 1984, and have seen new drugs come down the pike constantly, as well as new monitors which make general anesthesia much more exact. If you had your surgeries in the 1980′s, you probably got sodium pentothal for your general anesthesia, and different gases that were more difficult for kids to get rid of. Now there are several IV induction agents that are more controllable than pentothal, better gases as well. They’ve come a long way, baby!
In order to get the best possible anesthesia outcome, you must have your complete medical records sent to the hospital you choose to have your tonsil surgery. Because of the nature of the large med centers/university centers, the anesthesiology department sees a large number of people who have airway issues as well as anesthetic reaction issues.
That being said, my boyfriend has been using a CPAP machine very happily for four years. It has made a huge difference in the quality of his life. He sleeps well, has lots of energy, is no longer plagued by snoring or falling asleep during the day. He did say that it took him about a month to get used to it. There are a number of face masks and nasal masks, too. Make sure that you choose the model that best suits you. As for sleeping with a partner, it’s no big problem for either one of us.
Another point; there are several new surgeries for sleep apnea besides just a tonsillectomy(however, you probably need to have them out anyway), a uvulectomy(removing the droopy thing in the back of your throat), a septoplasty(making sure that you don’t have nasal obstruction), something called a Pillar procedure, a laser treatment called a LUAP and several others. You need to discuss all the types of surgical corrections that are available before you decide exactly what to do. There are so many different and new procedures out there that before you let anyone do surgery, ask that doc how many of those kinds of procedures has he/she done! If it’s less than 50, don’t let that doc do that procedure, find another one.
So be very clear about asking what surgeries are being considered(seems like getting rid of the tonsils is required), once decided on that course of action, make sure to pick your hospital properly(ask for a referral if you want a different doc and hospital), make sure that you a detailed discussion with anesthesia providers about your previous experiences, and above all, remember, this is your body and YOU have the right to choose who touches your body and how.