[Ski]

#1073413

Ask your surgeon for their complication percentage (in other words, the percentage of their patients who have experienced complications following surgery), and also for their fatality percentage. My guess is that the fatality percentage will be ZERO. It’s one of those things that they must warn you about, thanks to this litigation-happy society, but in fact happens EXTREMELY rarely. I understand your concerns, it’s always scary, but if you have an experienced surgeon with a low complication rate, you’ve done the best you can do for yourself.

[Maria]

#1073414

I guess my doctor was rather blase…I traveled by plane 24 hours after taking the pill and at home was just instructed to flush twice and to sleep alone.

[kgoff04]

#1019686

Hi, I am new here and any answers would be greatly appreciated. I was diagnosed in March 2008, I had a child in July 2007 and didn’t feel right after. I work in a critical care unit at a local hospital and knew there was something going on. I started having blood pressure problems about 32 weeks into my pregnancy so I delivered a week early. My blood pressure kept acting crazy and finally in March 2008 I got my PCP to do blood work and was sent to and ENDO where I had the iodine test done and found out that I have grave’s disease. I have been on medicine for about a year now and they are unable to get my levels under control. I am too high one time and too low the next, I am tired of the roller coaster ride. I have a crazy high heart rate and shake all of the time. I have tried to think of a way to have the radioactive iodine but I just can’t think of a way to be away from everyone for ten days, especially my child since I am a stay at home mom. I have decided to have the surgery and it is scheduled for March 9. I spoke to the surgeon and he told me about the possible risks but also told me about the possibilty of death. I know that it is a possibility with any surgery but I was by myself. I am so nervous about surgery because I don’t want to leave my child without a mother and don’t know what he would do without me. Anybody have any words of encouragement or any statistics of death with the thyroid surgery???

[DianneW]

#1073415

Ski’s suggestion to ask the surgeon about complication rates (in order to get an idea of risk of death) is a good one. I too am quite sure it will be zero. I have read that on a national level, death rates for this surgery are next to zero these days. You are simply being warned of the risks that exist in ANY procedure.

I do understand the fears of leaving your children without a mother, since I let those unreasonable fears color my decision when I made it 13 years ago, choosing RAI entirely on that basis rather than on what might be best for ME. In all these years I’ve never known anyone to die of ATD treatment or thyroid surgery. In hindsight I’d have chosen both of those before RAI.

Maria, I bet you didn’t have young children at home when your doctor gave you lax post-RAI advice. They like to spend long periods cuddling, with their little thyroids right next to Mommy’s thyroid, and there isn’t a way to explain to them that it’s dangerous to their developing gland. It hurts their feelings to be rejected by Mommy, so it’s better if Mommy simply stays away until the radiation has a chance to decay.

I hope you weren’t on a long flight.

[hyperm]

#1073416

Snap with the ups and downs and like you after 4 years and a thryoid storm I have agreed that I am having a partial removal. Like you I am petrified as I have 2 little boys. But please stay calm – my sis and friend had the op they were fine and many people I know too.

I am a very anxious person and the graves doesn’t help. Surgeons (in the UK anyway) must tell you about fatalities by law – but you are a young healthy woman (except the graves). I lost 2 babies due to graves – well my m/c rate was much higher and I was petrified going into have d&c’s and they had to tell me about the risk on aneasthesia. I can truly appreciate your concern as when my endo suggested it last year – there was no way I was going for that op but now I feel so ill and its effecting my quality of life so I know its the right decision. You will have a large team around you and an aneathistis watching your every move so you will be fine.

Maybe in the meantime you should ask for a sedative to keep you calm in your day to day until the op comes then they will give you a pre-op and you will be floating.

We are all here to help you through the time ahead and I am sure there are many people on here who will have had the op and have more supportive stories – I just really understand your concern.

[Maria]

#1073417

DianneW wrote:Ski’s suggestion to ask the surgeon about complication rates (in order to get an idea of risk of death) is a good one. I too am quite sure it will be zero. I have read that on a national level, death rates for this surgery are next to zero these days. You are simply being warned of the risks that exist in ANY procedure.

I do understand the fears of leaving your children without a mother, since I let those unreasonable fears color my decision when I made it 13 years ago, choosing RAI entirely on that basis rather than on what might be best for ME. In all these years I’ve never known anyone to die of ATD treatment or thyroid surgery. In hindsight I’d have chosen both of those before RAI.

Maria, I bet you didn’t have young children at home when your doctor gave you lax post-RAI advice. They like to spend long periods cuddling, with their little thyroids right next to Mommy’s thyroid, and there isn’t a way to explain to them that it’s dangerous to their developing gland. It hurts their feelings to be rejected by Mommy, so it’s better if Mommy simply stays away until the radiation has a chance to decay.

I hope you weren’t on a long flight.

I had a half hour flight and a 9 month old. I did have a huge house and a nanny though.

[nancym]

#1073418

I just had my thyroidectomy on January 20th. I went to the endocrinologist today and for the first time in 3 years I’M ALMOST NORMAL! I understand your fear about the surgery. However, I’ve had quite a few surgeries and this was, by far, the easiest. I was scheduled to go back to work after 2 weeks. I ended up having an allergic skin reaction to the cleanser they used prior to surgery so that moved my return to work date back a week. But honestly, the surgery was not bad at all. I think a few days with some help since you can’t lift anything greater than 10 lbs and you will be feeling terrific. I had the RAI twice and it failed.

[elf]

#1073419

It’s interesting how different these post-RAI recommendations are. My doctors never said that I had to stay away from my house after RAI. They were just stressing to stay min 6 feet away from my kids, use different utensils, flush twice. I still decided to spend 2 days away from my kids, 11 months and 2.5 years old then.

[kgoff04]

#1073420

Thanks to eveyone that has posted in reply to my post. It is nice to know that other people in the world have the same disease. I am from a small town and it is not very common at all, especially at the age of 25 when I was diagnosed. Thanks nancym, I am glad that you posted because you had your surgery so recently and I am now put at ease with it. Like I said in my original post I work at the local hospital in the ICU and am very much aware of possibilites during surgery and I have always been one to over analyze things, especially when it comes to something like this. Again, thanks everyone.

[kgoff04]

#1073421

So I had my surgery and it went great. I am really bruised and I didn’t realize that I would be this bruised. I haven’t had to take any pain medicine with it which is a plus. I got to come home the next day and feel great. I had forgotten what it was like to not have tremors in my hads all of the time. I honestly look like someone has taken a baseball bat to my neck and chest area. I hope that it goes away soon.

[Ski]

#1073422

Thanks for the update! It’s great to hear that the tremors have stopped, I hated that part! What does the doctor say about the bruising? I didn’t have the surgery, and I don’t remember hearing about that from others, so I’d be interested to hear how that progresses for you.

[kgoff04]

#1073423

Sorry it has taken me so long to reply to your post. The dr. said that the bruising is from when I was laying down during the surgery and then sitting up makes it go down with gravity to the least resistant tissue. I have gone back for my post op check up and I haven’t felt this good in so long that I feel like a new person. I can actually keep up with my soon to be 2 year old and not be out of breath and my heart racing.

[belldandy112]

#1073424

Are you back at home already? Wow, that was quick! Er … how was the hospital food, or did you hang around long enough to check it out? ” title=”Smile” />

Glad everything went well — best of luck during your recovery!

Melissa
Austin, TX

[robin]

#1073425

My docs only told me to be careful for 24-48 hours! What have they learned since then? No small children and no animals. That was only a few years ago. I’m puzzeled.

[belldandy112]

#1073426

Only 24-48 hours? Cripes. Lasix surgery had me down for an entire week …!

[Author]

Posts