Related Questions For Radiofrequency Ablation
After having nerves burned three weeks ago, I still have a pain level of seven. What can be done next?4 answersWhat can cause pain in the leg 2 years after RF ablation?3 answersIs it okay to smoke weed after radiofrequency ablation? 1 answerCan I resume breastfeeding after RFA to Saphenous Vein? Or should I wait until my baby is completely weaned?7 answersI am having painful muscle spams 3 weeks after a greater saphenous vein ablation and phlebectomy of my right calf. Should I be concerned?2 answersWill the RFA procedure alone help the appearance of bulging veins? 9 answersIs it normal for my leg to feel hot almost 4 weeks after radiofrequency ablation and vein stripping?3 answersShould I get radiofrequency ablation?2 answersIs a vein ablation right for me at this time? 8 answersHow far apart should my injections be and are they painful? 5 answersAn ultrasound revealed one faulty valve and they are recommending all superficial veins be treated. Is this the normal course of action?8 answersIn view of so many disappointing testimonies regarding EVLT, would you say radiofrequency is a better treatment option for varicose veins?4 answers
When To Call The Doctor
- You have chest pain or shortness of breath that does not go away when you rest.
- Your pulse feels irregular — it is very slow or very fast .
- You have dizziness, fainting, or you are very tired.
- You have a severe headache that does not go away.
- You have a cough that does not go away
- You are coughing up blood or yellow or green mucus.
- You have problems taking any of your heart medicines.
- Your weight goes up by more than 2 pounds in a day for 2 days in a row.
- Your wound changes. It is red or swollen, it has opened, or there is more drainage coming from it.
- You have chills or a fever over 101°F .
Preparing For Heart Valve Surgery
Heart valve surgery is usually done in a specialist centre where heart surgeons work. There may not be suitable facilities locally, so you may not be able to have the surgery at your local hospital.
Before you go into hospital, you will need to prepare in advance. Many people are in hospital for about a week after surgery and it can take up to three months to fully recover at home. You wont be able to drive for some time after your surgery, so you may need to arrange for family or friends to help with things like cooking, shopping and cleaning. If you can, its a good idea to stock your freezer with some pre-prepared meals. For more information, see our section: Recovering from heart valve surgery.
Your surgeon will explain how to prepare for your operation. If you smoke, youll be strongly advised to stop. This is because smoking increases your risk of getting a chest or wound infection, which can slow down your recovery after surgery.
Youll have your heart valve surgery under general anaesthesia. This means youll be asleep during the operation. A general anaesthetic can make you sick, so you need to have an empty stomach before having a general anaesthetic. This is why its important that you dont eat or drink anything before surgery. Follow your anaesthetist or surgeons advice and if you have any questions, just ask.
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Orthopaedic Surgery Will Impact Your Physical And Psychological Ability Travel Comfortably By Plane
Surgery will impact your ability to transit the airport, tolerate turbulence and sit comfortably in a chair for the required duration of the flight. A broken bone will significantly impact your ability to tolerate turbulence. The following factors should be considered and understood BEFORE choosing to book or board your flight.
Cardiothoracic Surgical Considerations In Pilots
It is possible to return to flying as a pilot after cardiac surgery however, special attention to perioperative planning is essential choice of procedure and prosthetic material are often critical in the determination of license renewal. Restrictions on pilot licenses are likely to apply following surgery and postoperative follow-up usually requires intensive additional investigations at specific time points. The cardiac surgeon should always liaise with the pilots AME prior to the operation and understand the ramifications of different courses of action, and the need for certain clinical investigations to allow the AME to determine their suitability to return to their flying career or recreation.
As a general principle, the authors recommend that the most appropriate, evidence-based, surgical intervention should always be offered, ensuring that the pilot is aware of the ramifications of this suggestion to their professional role. If unacceptable to the pilot, however, the surgeon should be willing to offer aircrew alternative options . These should still be clinically appropriate but allow these professionals the opportunity to continue with their professional careers . Pilots should be aware of the additional risks that might be associated with these alternative courses of action, but as long as an informed decision is agreed between the surgeon and pilot, informed consent is maintained.
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Things To Remember At The Airport
If you have a pacemaker or an implantable cardioverter defibrillator , you may worry about going through the security screening process at the airport. Todays pacemakers and ICDs are designed to withstand external interference of this type so you should be fine, although the metal around your device may cause the alarm to sound.
Tell the airport security staff about your device and make sure you have either your device ID card or a letter from your doctor about your heart condition and your device with you. If you need to be scanned with a hand-held screening scanner, it should never be held directly over your device.
On a practical level, make sure to leave yourself plenty of time to get to the airport, get through security and board your flight rushing is stressful and never the best start to a holiday. If you will be carrying your baggage yourself, invest in a suitcase on wheels so that you dont have to strain yourself lifting it on and off a baggage trolley.
Your Eating Habits May Change
You may notice that youve lost your appetite or you just feel too tired to eat. This is common, so be patient. Your appetite will soon be back to normal.
We suggest you try eating frequent, small meals throughout the day. You need proper nutrition to enable your body to heal and get stronger.
We recommend a diet low in fat, cholesterol and sodium and high in protein. Good sources of protein include fish, eggs, dairy, beans and nuts. Limit the amount of salt in your diet to 2,000 milligrams a day. Foods known to be high in salt include restaurant food, soups, pizza, bacon and other processed meats.
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What Type Of Medication And Equipment Do You Need
Planning and arriving early can save you headaches at the airport. In terms of equipment, its safe to fly with a pacemaker or defibrillator, but security equipment can interfere with the devices function, so alert security personnel in advance. Also, if you need to carry liquid medications or extra oxygen, get a document from your doctor that states you need to carry them on the plane with you.
Other Types Of Heart Valve Procedure
You may not need to have open-heart valve surgery. Your surgeon will discuss all the available options with you. These are as follows.
- Keyhole surgery. Rather than make a cut in your breastbone, your surgeon will make several small cuts in your skin to open parts of your chest.
- Percutaneous valve replacement, such as transcatheter aortic valve implantation . Your surgeon will pass a tube through a blood vessel in your groin or neck to replace or repair your heart valve. They may offer this procedure if youre not well enough to have open-heart valve surgery.
- Inserting a mitral clip. This device is clipped onto a failing mitral valve in your heart to make it work better. Your surgeon can do this without cutting into your breastbone.
These types of surgery arent suitable for everyone. Speak to your surgeon about the best procedure for you.
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Returning To Your Normal Activities
You’ll need to take things easy at first. Starting gentle exercise, such as walking, can be helpful when you feel up to it, but don’t try to do too much too quickly.
Your doctor or surgeon can give you specific advice about when you can return to your normal activities, but generally speaking:
- you can be a passenger in a car straight away
- you may not be able to drive for around 6 weeks wait until you can comfortably do an emergency stop
- you can have sex after 4 to 6 weeks make sure you feel strong enough first
- when you can return to work depends on the type of work you do this could be as soon as 6 to 8 weeks if your job mainly involves light work, but may not be for 3 months if it involves manual labour
- you should avoid strenuous exercise, sudden strains and heavy lifting for 3 months
Flying After Other Medical Procedures
Restrictions may also apply to flying with other medical conditions. Some general guidelines:
- Abdominal surgery 4-5 days and 10 days for more complicated abdominal surgery.
- Brain or neurosurgery 6 weeks.
- Cataract or corneal laser surgery 1-2 days and 10 days for more complicated eye surgery.
- Chest surgery 10 days provided there have not been any complications.
- Colonoscopy 1 day provided there have not been any complications.
- Lung surgery 3 months
- Heart attack 7-10 days provided there have not been any complications.
- Heart failure most people who have heart failure can still fly provided that the condition is stable and well controlled with treatment.
- Pacemaker People who have had a pacemaker or an implantable cardiac defibrillator fitted may travel without problems once they are medically stable.
- Retinal detachment 6 weeks.
- Carpal Tunnel Read our guide to flying after carpal tunnel surgery.
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Are You An International Patient
We see patients from around the world and try to make it as easy as possible to get care at Cleveland Clinic. Our Global Patient Services Department will help make arrangements or answer any questions you have. Cleveland Clinic also offers on-site interpreting services to help you have the best experience possible once you are here.
Please note: This video was taken before the COVID-19 pandemic. We now follow added protocols to protect our patients and caregivers.
Left Main Coronary Artery Stenting
For Class 1 and 2, a stent to the left main coronary artery requires six months of recovery.
3rd Class Medical Certification :
A current cardiovascular evaluation that must include:
- Hospital Admission History and Physical report
- Hospital Operative report
- Hospital Discharge summary
- All diagnostic test results, including complete ECG treadmill tracings and make, model, and serial number of implanted stents, if applicable.
- Cardiologist report including:
- An assessment of personal and family medical history
- Cardiac examination and general physical examination
- Blood chemistry profile with fasting plasma glucose level and total cholesterol with HDL, LDL, and triglycerides
- A statement regarding your medication dosage and frequency of use
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Relax And Enjoy Yourself
After a major operation, a relaxing holiday could be the best thing for your body to relax and recover. Take it easy and enjoy your time away. Remember to take appropriate health precautions as you would do at home staying hydrated and eating healthily are essential to maintaining your wellbeing. Travel insurance with heart bypass will help you relax and enjoy your holiday knowing youre fully covered.
Dental Work Following Surgery: Five Things To Know
Regular dental cleanings are essential to our overall wellbeing, but what happens after surgery? Can you get your teeth cleaned? What about other dental procedures like root canals or implants? If youve recently had surgery and are in need of a professional dental cleaning or a more elaborate procedure, you are at risk for complications if you do not take care of yourself and follow any instructions given by your doctor and dentist.
To ensure there are no complications here are five things you need to know:
Following surgery, your body needs to heal.
Your body has a natural healing process in place that shouldnt be sped up. After surgery, you will need to rest for a specified period of time. Depending on the surgery you had, the timeframe for rest can range anywhere from four weeks to a year . For dental work after surgery, you should wait at least six to eight weeks.
Your dentist will have your complete medical history and communicate with your surgeon before you have dental work done to ensure that enough time has passed since your surgery. If you rush into dental work immediately following surgery you may see serious complications.
The body isnt equipped to handle two procedures in a row. Even if you are simply going in for professional dental cleaning, your chances of bleeding or infection are higher because your body is busy trying to repair itself after having surgery.
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Angina Angioplasty Bypass Cad Heart Attack Stent
The FAA has amended the required observation and recovery time for applicants who have had coronary artery disease treated with uncomplicated Percutaneous Transluminal Coronary Angioplasty with stent placement. For First and Second Class cardiac special issuances, a three-month or six-month recovery and stabilization period is now required. For Third Class cardiac special issuance consideration, in accordance with BasicMed regulations FAR Part 68, the 90- or 180-day observation and recovery period is no longer required. See details below.
The requirements now include:
The Dangers Of Flying Post
Last November, when I asked my friend Harold whether hed mentioned our upcoming trip to St. Louis to the orthopedic surgeon who had pinned his broken hip together after a bike crash a few weeks earlier, I got a blank stare. We were, after all, flying, not riding our bikes.
No, he said. Telling his doctor that he was going out of town for a couple of days had never crossed his mind.
But perhaps it should have.
When surgeries are planned, doctors routinely tell patients not to travel for a month or so after the procedure. Mostly its an effort to stave off deep vein thrombosis, or blood clots, according to cardiologist Stuart Seides, head of the MedStar Heart Institute at Washington Hospital Center. Usually, blood clots arent dangerous in and of themselves. But a clot that forms in the deep veins of the leg can be deadly if it breaks off, travels to the lungs and creates a blockage known as a pulmonary embolism.
I would certainly say that the highest risk is in the first four weeks after surgery, Seides said. The risk is elevated for those who have had surgery below the waistline.
Normally, the risk of developing blood clots during travel is relatively low about 1 in 6,000 for trips lasting four hours or more, according to a landmark World Health Organization study.
But after surgery, the bodys clotting mechanism goes into overdrive. Its a protective mechanism, Seides said.
Travel increases the risk of clotting and pulmonary embolism in several ways.
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When Can I Fly After A Heart Attack
No two heart attacks are the same and everyone recovers differently. You must speak to your doctor about any travel plans. He / she will advise you when it is safe for you to fly following your heart attack.
Factors that will be taken into consideration include: how badly your heart was damaged if there were any complications after your heart attack if you still have any symptoms and if you are due to receive any more tests or treatment.
Medication While Travelling After Your Heart Bypass
When you speak to your GP, ensure they know all the details of your trip so they are able to give you enough medication to last you. You might need extra medication in case any gets damaged whilst travelling or youre caught up with any delays. Always pack your heart medications in your hand luggage in case your hold bags become lost during your travels.
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Things To Consider When Planning To Travel With A Heart Condition
As weve already stated, if you have had a recent heart condition diagnosis, heart attack or heart surgery, we would advise postponing any plans to travel overseas until you feel well again. Although time away can be of great benefit to your health, travelling itself is unpredictable and can be stressful.
Even when your heart condition is stable and you feel well, you should speak to your doctor before booking a trip. They will be able to tell you whether or not they think you are fit to travel, and if so, what kind of activities you can safely take part in while youre away.
Your choice of destination may be important too some climates, especially those that are either very warm or very cold, can potentially put a strain on your heart, while high altitudes can also have an effect. Weve looked at this in more detail below.
When youre ready to book, make sure to give yourself plenty of time to get all your travel plans in order before you go. If you have a heart condition, NHS Choices recommends preparing for a trip four to six weeks before you travel, .
This will give you time to organise your journey plans, any medication you need to take and of course, travel insurance to cover your heart condition. Getting everything arranged ahead of time will mean your holiday is all the more relaxing when it comes around.
Speak to your doctor
Destination
Give plenty of time
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