Begin operation "Operation"

OK, this will be the start of the operation and recovery portion of the news. I've found the blog a reasonably convenient way of keeping people updated.

A quick recap: I had a femoral artery start to blow out in late 2010. It finally failed and bypass surgery was done in April 2011. The bypass has now failed and the next best (perhaps only) option is an aortobifemoral bypass. Basically an inverted "Y" graft that makes a new connection from below the heart to each of the legs.

The surgery is being scheduled for next week and we'll start the process with an angiogram tomorrow. The angiogram will help pinpoint the failed area and allow the surgeons to plan new connection points. It shouldn't be much, but I've planned to stay out of work tomorrow and Friday. Due to the lack of blood flow to my right leg, my walking distance has been reduced to 25-40 feet before pain sets in. If I sit or lay for a period, it takes a few seconds for my leg to react to requested commands. Kind of like that damn computer. I don't feel any real discomfort until I walk. If I don't slow down or stop, I risk my leg buckling. It is a weird feeling to have a limb perform its own mutiny, and it will.

I've listed some of my symptoms so that if any of you are experiencing anything similar you may have some info to work with. My original symptoms were the same, but they progressed much slower. This time it was pretty much immediate.

Causes. How did this happen? Yes, smoking is a contributing factor. The original blowout was probably caused by plaque buildup that caused a restriction. The artery was weakened by age and abuse and started to leak. The leak progressed until it finally gave way. High cholesterol, high blood pressure, lack of vitamins and minerals (folic acid, vitamins A, B6, B12, C and E, essential fatty acids) and yes smoking all contribute to weakened arteries.

The second failure is still undetermined. If the surgeons made an error, they could easily blame it on another weak artery and that might be hard to argue. There might be some argument as to why they attached the bypass to an artery that wasn't in good shape, but if it comes to it, the lawyers can hash that out. I just want to be able to walk again. And dance! OK, not the dance part, but it just seemed to fit there.

Silver lining. The in hospital recovery time is 5-7 days. The last time I think it was 4 days. I don't recall having the urge to smoke while I was in last time and was able to go days after without smoking. I really feel that I was close to stopping, but that dumbass effect convinced me that I was fine to start again. I'm going for it again this time. I really have become to dislike it, but still do it. Dumbass.

Ok, that's it for now, I'll update after the angiogram.