Coronary Artery Triple By Pass

[iloveglee]

I am seeking information from anyone who has had triple by pass surgery at least 10 years ago and how they are now. has their health remained stable, or have further symptoms developed.

[jourdain2]

My husband (now 81) had a triple heart by-pass 14 years ago (in France at Poitiers). He is absolutely fine. We walk the dog daily and he gardens and does all the normal DIY things, including more heavy lifting than I can manage. He does get cold very quickly and then takes some warming-up - but this could simply be age.

Every other year his check-up includes a 'stress-test' when he has to bicycle like mad (static) and 2 years ago his blood-pressure dropped alarmingly whilst doing this. The resulting hospital stay of 2 days was to shove a camera up through the femoral artery. This showed that one of the by-passes was only working at 50%. It was decided to carry on as we are and he's fine. If he does too much fast walking too soon after a meal he gets angina pains for a minute or 2, we stop and they go.

He had had angina for a couple of years in UK and been told it was OK, b ut when he moved here his GP checked everything, didn't like it and sent him to specialist. I think he would have been an invalid or dead if he hadn't moved.

[Noe-schitt]

Had one in 1999 in Stoke hospital it took quite a while to get over it with one or two minor problems afterwards but after 12 months was feeling fine and still am today
I have had more problems with the diabetes that I was diagnosed with while I was in there.

[Cloverjo]

My dad had a triple bypass done just over 20 years ago. At the time, he was told it would last ten years, but there are no plans to redo it now. He is fit and fairly healthy, although he has an increased heart rate at times.

[Sqad]

jourdain2

\\\\He had had angina for a couple of years in UK and been told it was OK, b ut when he moved here his GP checked everything, didn't like it and sent him to specialist. I think he would have been an invalid or dead if he hadn't moved.\\\\

What a terrible story....wasn't he offered coronary angiography in the UK?

[iloveglee]

thank you for your comments everyone. this is more or less what I had expected, the information is very useful.

[jourdain2]

No sqad, he wasn't, he was living in a village in Wales at the time. He's rather worried about returning to the UK, but now we are far more knowledgeable and know what treatments are available.

[Sqad]

Thanks for your reply........poor show on part of NHS.^^

[boxtops]

That backs up the information we're getting here in the UK that the state healthcare in Wales (NHS Wales) has a very much poorer reputation than this side of the border (NHS England).

[slaney]

Agree sqad - a poor judgement call by that particular GP.
I do seem to remember way back then (before 1998 when jourdain's husband started to get symptoms) that there was a reluctance to send the over 65s for the procedure.

[Sqad]

slaney....indeed......but i thought that was confined to smokers, as certain Cardiologists refused angiography as by-pass tended to be given to no smokers.

[jourdain2]

OH gave up smoking aged early-40s (he smoked a few cigars, gave up ciggies in his 30's). His mother had died of a heart-attack, but it was not out of the way to hear people complaining about their twinges in the early/mid 1980's. A pill to dissolve under the tongue when needed was her treatment.

[slaney]

We did indeed lag behind France at that time from the point of cardiac deaths, jourdain, but we have caught up now...
http://www.bmj.com/content/bmj/342/bmj.d566/F1.large.jpg

[jourdain2]

Thank you slaney, I will read the link attentively.

[jourdain2]

Not much reading required! Very reassuring.

[iloveglee]

this is all very useful information. it seems that the system for dealing with heart problems developing after 10 years vary greatly from country to country. its interesting to know that the 10 years appears to be a bit arbitrary as some people seem to have them last a great deal longer