numbness and very tight feeling after vats surgery

Hi lin1006, I am about 4 weeks post VATS, taking 50mg tramadol at night, 200 mg gabapentin during the day. I think Aleve would be helpful for the back pain, check with your MD about antiinflammatories, but in my case I can't take any NSAIDS due to the doctor ruptured my spleen putting in chest tube prior to VATS. Pain does get better. Mostly discomfort now as opposed to actual pain. Hang in there

Hi Tasha, 

Did the pain go away? Was it another pneumothorax?

My lung healed by itself using chest drain tube plus breathing exercise (with incentive spirometer) to expand my right lung which was 75%-80% collapsed. Doctors did not do that so called powder pleurodesis....I'm scared SP will recur. :-(

You said earlier you are numb etc? What is vat? I was told the talc procedure guarantees your lung can not collapse again. Is this right? If so, wouldn't that make consistent air in your lungs and you'd breathe easier? Your lung is supposed to contract and expand though so this isn't really normal so I'm thinking it might be harder to breathe? You had collapses on both lungs, i presume not at the same time but how far apart time wise? The specialist  I saw now reckons my lungs are too bad for a bullectomy or talc procedure, going for a prognosis in January.

Vats is video assisted thoracoscopic surgery.

I don't have the numbness, but I having the weird noise. 

Yes, I have had talc on both lungs, and sadly it is not a gurantee that they can't collapse again. My right lung has and as I sit here typing I fear it has again. The left lung collapsed in 2014 and I have had no problems with it since surgery. but the right lung as been a problem. My surgery was in May, and it has been a mess since. I learned in Nov. it was partially collapsed so I have spent 4-5 weeks doing little, they told me Monday the X-ray was clear so I bowled this week and now I sit here hearing the noise again. My breathing is fine. So I don't know what to think. I guess I just throw in the towel and do nothing for the rest of my life. Good luck to you with your issues. I have a disease called LAM which is driving me to drink.

I've heard of LAM. I believe it's rare in men, but I do know a guy who has had breast cancer. There is an article somewhere I read on the net that a woman with LAM took rapamycin. Her breathing test before was 40% and sometime later had increased to 92% which they say is normal. Doctors tell me I have severe emphysema to due heavy smoking over the years. (2/3 of both lungs damaged) Of course I've quit now, but only after the second time of the collapsed lung, maybe that's why it happened a short time after the first. I'm feeling better but still don't want to exert myself in case of it happening again. I don't have any aches or pains and was out of hospital 2 days each time. The second time I felt good enough to leave same day but they wouldn't let me. I also though it was going to happen the second time so went to the hospital and it collapsed there. If I was as bad as they say surely I would be on oxygen or assisted breathing in some form? I have an appointment next year for some type of breathing test I presume and I've been told that will give them a test score. I don't think I'm as bad as they say and the oxygen in my blood was 1 unit better than the specialist's when he put something on my finger so I will be very interested in the results. In any case it is something hanging over my head now that I could have a collapsed lung again which is peeing me off even if I do seem to get over it quickly.

That is kind of where I'm at. Living in fear of collapse. I just spent 5 weeks doing nothing, they tell me Xray looks good but I can still hear noise, so I go bowl this week. Here I am this weekend hearing the noise and feeling the sensation as if the lung is partially collapsed again. So a 1000 debates are running in my head. It is starting to look like bowling maybe contributing to the partial collapse, I don't want to have another surgery, but if it would end this noise I may have to see what the doc thinks. I just started the generic form of the med you spoke about this month.My hope was and is, the collapse would heal itself which they say it did, despite the noise, and the meds bring me some piece of mind. I'm not on oxygen either and hope to stay that way but I have to wonder how many surgeries can one have before something like that happens. I hope your appt goes well, I'm supposed to go back to Kansas City in Aug. but if this noised doesn't subside it may be sooner.

Dear Marie,

First Merry Christmas. Are you sure that this noise is not a self triggered anxiety  reaction . It used  to frighten me and Ifind out that I can control  it after a year of fear . I noticed that it has nothing to do with the collapse and I get only when I am frightened 

Katia, thank you for replying. 

I don't know if it is self triggered or not. I do not think so, but at this point who knows. I only hear and feel it when I lay a certain away or lean up against something a certain way. I bowl, and this week was the first time I bowled in 5 weeks. Today I stretched out on the floor and sort of bench pressed the bowling ball, and heard and felt nothing, but later standing up, I could feel the sensation again. Of course i'm paranoid because I don't want a collapse again, I want to bowl and I don't want surgery. How did you control it? Would you want to exchange contact info and private message about this sometime, I have lost so much peace of mind because of this.

If I can help you and be if any support I will not say no . Of course , no problem

What does your noise sound like. I have had strange noises coming from my lungs also.  It sounds like a high pinched sound and sometimes a bubbling noise and cracklings. It has gone away for now but it comes and goes. 

For me, if I lay just right, it is a bubbling and or expelling air sound. Sometimes it sounds like the lung is passing gas. I had surgery in May. This started in Sept. I made it to doc in Nov. and did have a partial collapse. Took it easy for 5 weeks, Monday they said collapsed was healed but I still have a tad bit of this noise and contracting feeling when I sit or lay just right. 

Merry Xmas Marie. I go ten pin bowling, left the 3 man team for a slower 4 man team league. PLEASE let me know how you go with Rapamycin. I'm going to ask for a script this week.

 

Brian, I bowl on 2 teams a week, or supposed to. Last week in my first night back since this latest mess, I got my first 500 series this year, a 507. Now as I sit here thinking my lung is collapsed again, I wonder if that was my last night of bowling. As for the Rapamycin, I think you can only get it if you are a kidney transplant patient or have LAM, unless you have a great doc. here it costs $2,000 a month with insurance. I'm on the generic which is $10 with insurance. Makes no sense. I think I'm calling my doc today to see if he is in and telling him about the bubbling feeling that has come back. My instinct tells me I'm probably going to be off the lanes a while longer and if that doesn't work I fear another surgery. Totally hate this. I'll keep you updated

Hi Marie, You'd know if your lung is collapsed or does it collapse partially? They call it rapamune here and it is listed on my local chemist's website. Our govt susidises many medicines and it is $37 on the pbs system. I might have trouble buying it because of my ailment. The chemist only mentioned organ rejection not even LAM. My doctor has to ring the mob concerned and get an authorisation number so I can get the discounted price otherwise it is nearly $1700. Unfortunately my doctor is away till 18/1. I will also check to see if there is a generic brand here. What is the name of yours? How long have you been on it and is it of any help? I'll let you know if I can get something here.