Tomorrow I am back at Harefields for the the results of a quite important test that I had done the last time I was at Clinic.This could result in me needing another operation if the results are not good,I am worried and have not been the best company the last couple of days as I have been preoccupied with the outcome.
Those of you who follow me on Twitter or Facebook may have heard about the test I had done but for those who don't I will explain about what I had done and why.
During my last stay in hospital I had several tests done including biopsy,CT and bronchcoscopy there were no abnormality found regarding infection or results from biopsy.The CT scan had indicated there may be a problem with my oesophagus closing off completely, and there was a positive result for a test called oil red stain. This I was told could indicate that I was having gastric reflux and the way to find out was a impedance study.
This sounded interesting what did it involve?
I was asked to attend the respiratory function and I was fitted with a nasal gastric tube containing several sensors along its length, this was then fed into my nose down my throat and into the oesophagus stopping short of the stomach this was then attached to a monitor box which I wore over my shoulder for the next 24hours I was told that I had to push buttons to indicate when I ate and when I slept and other buttons if I experienced any pain or discomfort lucky for me I didn't.
The whole process was irritating to say the least and I was aware of the tube for the whole 24 hours and I tried a sandwich just after it had been fitted and after had a soft diet for the rest of the evening.Liquids were okay but taking my medication proved to be easier than I thought it would be.
By the end of 24 hours I was wanting to pull the tube out myself and I do admit that when it was finally time to removed it was bliss!
The League of Friends did good business as I stocked up on bacon and sausage rolls and cheese and ham toasted sandwiches that day before I went home.
Why would I have this done?
It seems that sometimes people can suffer from reflux from the stomach and this can get into the lungs and cause damage, encourage rejection and infection.This has happened to another lung transplantee I know this problem has caused him a great deal of heartache including a need for radiation therapy to eliminated his immune system to deal with rejection problems. So I was aware of the issues that could occur if it was left, and I was happy to find out earlier rather than later.
I am hoping for a positive outcome but if it turns out I have a problem it can be treated using a operation to wrap the stomach around the top of the oesophagus this is done using keyhole surgery and stops the reflux getting into the lungs.
I must admitted that the whole process is wearing me down and I long for the day when I will be able to take full advantage of my new lungs and see my lung function improve and continue to improve.
I have improved, but in the back of my mind I worry that things might go downhill again, I need to get better than this and hope that a solution can be found as to why I have not.
Fingers crossed for tomorrow watch this space for the next instalment!
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Thank You :-)