The last 7 days of my life... (not for the squeamish)

Digital Matt · May 19, 2007

...have been real interesting. As many of you know, I had a heart transplant, and this December 9th will be 10 years. I have a yearly checkup where I have a right heart catheterization to check out the heart. They run a catheter into my femeral artery and up into my heart. The procedure went fine, and the results were good. I took two days off of work to recover. Something was not right from the get go. My right leg was not doing well, and by this past Wednesday night, my right leg was cold and numb. I went to the ER. After two days of tests, and an emergency surgery, I found out that my femeral artery had collapsed after the cath, and I was barely getting any blood to my right leg. After a 4 hour surgery to repair the artery, using grafts from a nearby artery, I'm at the Cleveland Clinic recovering, and should be on my way home tomorrow.

Just thought I'd share. I'll be back soon

The_Traveler · May 19, 2007

Aha, the old collapsing-artery-endangering-limb-and-ultimately-life ploy. I haven't seen that used in a while but still quite effective.

Sw1tchFX · May 19, 2007

Wow, that's scary!

Thinking of how my leg would feel kind of gives me goosebumps.

John_05 · May 19, 2007

it certainly sounds like youve had quite the eventful week. i hope youre doing much better now, and hope your recovery goes well Matt.

take your time coming back. your health is more important than anything. i doubt anyone here would fault you for being away as long as you need to be.

just hurry up. i might be wrong. :lol:

(just kidding)

danalec99 · May 19, 2007

Glad you are doing well.

terri · May 19, 2007

For heaven's sake, Matt!!! :shock:

:hug::

I'm glad you're on the road to recovery. Marj must have freaked!! Best wishes to both of you during this stressful period.

Hurry back, we miss you, hon!

Antarctican · May 19, 2007

Yoiks, how stressful. Thank goodness you were paying attention to what your body was telling you, so that the condition was caught 'in time'. Best wishes for a quick recovery.

GoM · May 19, 2007

Holy...

Get better soon, Matt. We're thinking of ya.

doenoe · May 19, 2007

Oh sh!t, thats pretty nasty stuff. Good to hear it went ok

Mitica100 · May 20, 2007

Ouch! Glad you're ok and recovering though!

LaFoto · May 20, 2007

Oh, no good! :shock:
Matt!
Speedy recovery wishes from Germany ... and many of them!

I didn't know THAT could happen, too.
When my sister had her heart attack last year at the end of February, she also had to undergo a catheterisation, and they did not press onto her artery for long enough after the stent had been implanted, so without her knowledge (sedation) she lost about 2 litres of blood both into her bed as well as into her leg ... the sight afterwards was not for the squeamish, either :roll: - and use of her leg was hindered for a good while, too.

Check-up went fine though, but to know that the artery can also collapse :shock: ...

ale: !

Corry · May 20, 2007

Oh, wow! Yes, I did know that you'd had a heart transplant. So sorry to hear that happened! I'm glad you are recovering! Sending good vibes your way, Matt!

abraxas · May 20, 2007

Sheesh Matt, take care. Best recovery on you.

Arch · May 20, 2007

some vibes from here too... get well soon :thumbup:

benjikan · May 20, 2007

Digital Matt said:
...have been real interesting. As many of you know, I had a heart transplant, and this December 9th will be 10 years. I have a yearly checkup where I have a right heart catheterization to check out the heart. They run a catheter into my femeral artery and up into my heart. The procedure went fine, and the results were good. I took two days off of work to recover. Something was not right from the get go. My right leg was not doing well, and by this past Wednesday night, my right leg was cold and numb. I went to the ER. After two days of tests, and an emergency surgery, I found out that my femeral artery had collapsed after the cath, and I was barely getting any blood to my right leg. After a 4 hour surgery to repair the artery, using grafts from a nearby artery, I'm at the Cleveland Clinic recovering, and should be on my way home tomorrow.

Just thought I'd share. I'll be back soon

You will be fine, you will get through this and will use this experience to enrich yours and others lives by the insight you have acquired through this chapter of your life.

I wish only the best for you and want you to know how courageous you are for sharing this with us. As a result of this knowledge our energy will assist you in a complete recovery. Putting out the message has now made it public domain, it is now in the "Universal Soup" available for all of us to access...

God Bless and Be Well
Ben