terriep Posted June 21, 2005 Share Posted June 21, 2005 Has anyone after their lobectomy had drainage from their incision? I don't recall having this, however, I was in the hospital longer, etc. My mom seems to have quite a bit, but the doctor tells her that's normal. "Normal" soaks through her clothes, and usually happens when she coughs alot. Also, she is having trouble with being hoarse. She can't seem to clear her throat, and the visiting nurse/doctor she calls don't seem to worry about this. Any ideas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john Posted June 21, 2005 Share Posted June 21, 2005 My mom had some horseness after surgery. The surgeon looked over the x-rays or what ever and concluded there was nothing that happened in the surgery that could have caused this. We got a good referral to him. His nurses called him "gifted" and when sloan kettering looked at the x-rays they said they could have not done better as far as the surgery goes, so we had confidence in him. He immediately had an ENT come up to check for any reasons for the horseness. I would think they would look into this better, at least they did with my mom. It seems at least they should check this out. I don't think drainage was an issue with my mom. Doesnt hurt to have another surgeon check things out. Make sure you get a really good referral. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chloesmom Posted June 21, 2005 Share Posted June 21, 2005 I didn't have any hoarseness, but I did have a drainage situation with my incision for at least two months. It got better with time and eventually quit when the whole thing healed, but it was there for a while, even after I was told to just leave it uncovered. Cindy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fay A. Posted June 21, 2005 Share Posted June 21, 2005 Terri, These are my personal experiences after having had three thoracotomies. I developed pneumonia in the operated upon Lung. The infection started about a week after the surgery, but was not diagnosed for several more weeks. Drainage from the incision was present,I was coughing, felt I couldn't clear my throat, and I was told repeatedly that it was "...nothing to worry about...". WRONG! Once diagnosed it took 5 different antibiotics and about 5 months to fully recover from the pneumonia/infection. And as a result of the infection in the chest cavity I had horrific scarring inside the chest that complicated the second thoracotomy about 10 months later. During the second thoracotomy I had no drainage from the incision once the effusions dried up and the drainage tubes were removed. I did not develop pneumonia, and was feeling fine. No cough, no problems clearing my throat. The Right Anterior Thorascopy and Mediastinoscopy incisions became infected with Psuedomonas when the the sutures were removed (AKA Hospital Aquired). Bad news for me. And a long story. Third Thoracotomy the incision was dry once the tubes were removed. About 3 weeks post surgery I had a problem with infection in the trachea/esophagus due to a small fistual. Another long story, but I by this time I had a Doctor who cared enough to find the problem and treat appropriately. Symptoms were cough and inability to clear my throat. I had had my right lung removed and there was a small air/fluid problem where the lung had been taken out. I hope your Mom will have the problem evaluated in person by her physician (preferably her surgeon)sooner (like TODAY) rather than later. If she can't get an appointment then she should consider going to the ER. I made the mistake of listening to the ones who were telling me it was nothing. I became extremely ill, and it took a very long time to recover. I could easily have died. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gerbil runner Posted June 21, 2005 Share Posted June 21, 2005 Gee, Fay, you have all the luck ! Just wanted to put in my 2 cents worth - I didn't have lung surgery, but after my gallbladder was removed, my throat was really sore and I was hoarse. One of the nurses told me the tube used for anesthesia can rough up the vocal cords. Could that be your mother's problem, Terri? I hope it is something simple like that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wfshaw Posted June 21, 2005 Share Posted June 21, 2005 Hi Terrie, I had the hoaaarseness for about two weeks then I was ok. No drainage problems though. Bill in PA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowflake Posted June 21, 2005 Share Posted June 21, 2005 Terri, I don't recall being hoarse, but I KNOW the only drainage I had was through that darn dryer conduit in my side. You know the one, the doctor/intern comes in and tells you to "take a deep breath" before he yanks it out, and DAMN, there just ain't a breath deep enough! Yeah, THOSE tubes... No seepage/drainage/weeping from the cut, maybe the first day or two in the hospital, but nothing when I went home from the hospital (day nine). The holes where the tubes were did ooze and took quite some time to heal completely. I would think (and I am NOT a doctor nor any type of medical professional) that "ick" coming out means that the cut isn't going to heal properly and I would ask my doctor/medical team about it until I found an answer that included taking a good look at it. My PCP is the one that took care of getting the darn breathing tube holes to seal, I saw her weekly after a "let me know how you're doing" appointment when the openings were inspected. Good luck! Becky Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrea Posted June 21, 2005 Share Posted June 21, 2005 My mom oozed, soaked clothing, soaked towels, she said it was gross. The surgeon said she must have popped a stitch. She went to her GP who bandaged it up more and then they said if it was still oozing on Monday to go back to the surgeon for another stitch. I think it resolved on her own. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Lamb Posted June 21, 2005 Share Posted June 21, 2005 Hi Terri,I think the being hoarse is expected for a while but I think that much seepage should be checked out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don M Posted June 22, 2005 Share Posted June 22, 2005 Terri: I never had hoarseness or seepage. I had a lot of swelling that my body gradually abosorbed and eliminated. I gess i am glad I got rid of it that way instead of leaking all over the place. If I was leaking like your mom, I would want a more elaborate answer than "normal". I guess the tube can cause a sore throat for while. I seem to remember that now. Don M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jang Posted June 22, 2005 Share Posted June 22, 2005 Terri, I had leakage through the chest tube incision. My doctor told me this was normal. But it only lasted for a week or so. But it did seem to be more when I coughed, or got up out of bed in the morning. I am having an ongoing problem with my voice. It is still hoarse. It's been 10 weeks since my bronoscopy, and that's when it started. It didn't happen during my lobectomy. The doctor said that I should give it 6 months to heal. Sometimes it takes that long. If it doesn't get better in six months, he will send me to a specialist. But I have been doing some reseach myself. I also had my upper left lobe removed. Apparently there is a recurrent laryngeal nerve that controls our left vocal cord and it passes from the neck down into the chest, wraps around the main blood vessel coming from the heart, and goes back up the voice box to control the left vocal cord. Sometimes this may get irritated or severed during the surgery. I am just trying to be patient and give it 6 months and I pray that it will heal itself. I definitely don't want any more surgery. But I keep telling myself, if the worst that happens from all this is that my voice changes, I can deal with that! Just tell her to give it some time. I know it's frustrating. I use my voice for work, and it's hard when I go to talk and nothing comes out! But my kids are loving it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendy Posted June 23, 2005 Share Posted June 23, 2005 I had many problems with my voice after my pneumonectomy. I actually had the nerve damage described by Jan above and did have to have a procedure to fix it. It doesn't happen often and typically if there is damage, it may correct itself in 6 months. One of the typical vocal cord paralysis signs is an inability to cough and choking on fluids much more easily than you did before your surgery. Hopefully your problem is just a temporary one from the tubes/oxygen etc. and you will be singing soon! Can't be much help on the drainage problem, but I am sending well wishes for better days ahead. Wendy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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