Wednesday afternoon, we removed the bandages where the catheter was stuck into Art's arm for the angiogram. It had been 24 hours. It looked like this.
There were some hard areas so Art thought it would be a good idea to massage it a bit. It seemed to soften the tissue. OK... fine.
By Wednesday evening and Thursday morning it looked like this.
I had Art call the cardiology unit at Tripler to ask if this was normal, and this is the very calm message I heard him leave on the recording.
What!?! Here's the message I would have left:
Well... we'll see what they say when they return the call. I'm going to try and answer it first.
POSTSCRIPT:
Eventually the arm looked like this and I was freaking out. Tripler had not called back after an hour so I e-mailed my medical consultant, DrumMajor who told me to go and have it checked out at Tripler. She also gave us lots of other fantastic advice.
We went right away to the cardiologist's unit and she saw us pretty quickly. She spent lots of time with us looking for infection at the entrance wound, swelling, temperature of arm, pain, etc.
She advised us to put warm compresses on it to dissipate the bruising and then alternate an hour or so of ace bandaging. She did reassure us that massaging the hard areas was a good thing to do to spread out the blood under the skin. She said icing it yesterday was also good to do. Thank goodness.
Art is sleeping now. He said he doesn't have to worry because I worry enough for both of us.
I think I'll go take a nap too.
There were some hard areas so Art thought it would be a good idea to massage it a bit. It seemed to soften the tissue. OK... fine.
By Wednesday evening and Thursday morning it looked like this.
I had Art call the cardiology unit at Tripler to ask if this was normal, and this is the very calm message I heard him leave on the recording.
"Hello, I have a question about some bruising I have on my arm after the angiogram I received. I'd like some advice about what sort of treatment I should be doing."
What!?! Here's the message I would have left:
"Hello, my husband had an angiogram and now his whole forearm is purplish red and swollen!!!! Is this normal? It looks horrible!!!! Should I call 911 since that's the only number that's given to us on the surgery exit sheet? WHAT SHOULD WE DO? It's scary! Arrrrghhhh!"
Well... we'll see what they say when they return the call. I'm going to try and answer it first.
POSTSCRIPT:
Eventually the arm looked like this and I was freaking out. Tripler had not called back after an hour so I e-mailed my medical consultant, DrumMajor who told me to go and have it checked out at Tripler. She also gave us lots of other fantastic advice.
We went right away to the cardiologist's unit and she saw us pretty quickly. She spent lots of time with us looking for infection at the entrance wound, swelling, temperature of arm, pain, etc.
She advised us to put warm compresses on it to dissipate the bruising and then alternate an hour or so of ace bandaging. She did reassure us that massaging the hard areas was a good thing to do to spread out the blood under the skin. She said icing it yesterday was also good to do. Thank goodness.
Art is sleeping now. He said he doesn't have to worry because I worry enough for both of us.
I think I'll go take a nap too.
YIKES! Those pictures look serious. I'm trusting that things will get better fast. Apparently I am still up just as your pre-written posting switches. Maybe that means everything is already better.
ReplyDeleteSigh... Still the same.
DeleteOh crap! Did they tell you that something like this could be expected or possible? If not, why not?!
ReplyDeleteLet them know you have this sequence of photos that can be posted all over the Internet.
They had better take extra good care of you now.
Does it hurt a lot, Art?
Yes, it would be interesting to compare how Art would write this post instead of Kay.
Good luck to you both.
I doesn't hurt him at all actually. It just looks darn ugly. The nurse did mention that there would be some bruising. I just didn't expect this much!!!
DeleteYES, OH CRAP! My Dad bruises like that after any kind of "thing" poked in his body. Scary though for sure!!!!!
ReplyDeleteWow that looks crazy. And I loved the contrast between the message he left and the message you would have left :) quite the contrast between husband and wife!
ReplyDeleteYes, such wounding requires a doctor's visit. Infection and blood clots are serious possibilities, but now that they have seen this, I can sleep at night!
ReplyDeleteMy husband and I both had many catheters and had some after pictures look like #1 but never pictures #2 & #3. Yikes! Good that you worry for both. Wonder what caused it. Did they take him off his blood thinners? Surely they did before the procedure.
ReplyDeletewow that looks awful
ReplyDeleteWow, that would scare me too. I'm glad you went back to the hospital. I hope it is looking and feeling better by now, or at least very soon.
ReplyDeleteHmmmm.... Looks the same to me. The doctor did say it would move a little and change colors in the next few days.
DeleteYou are right. I would have freaked out too. Glad you went back.
ReplyDeleteI tried the timed entry this morning, and it worked perfectly. Thank you.
I would freak too...it's part of being a mother-lol! Hope all goes well-keeps us mothers and wives informed...
ReplyDeleteOuch his poor arm! You know, every good marriage needs one worrier and one non worrier.
ReplyDeleteGlad you took Art's arm (and the rest of him,) to get it checked out. Wish they'd given you better discharge information on what to expect / not expect.
ReplyDelete(Disclaimer: Glad I could guide a bit, but I'm only an old cardiac nurse, and can't claim to be a medical consultant.)
Without knowing if a natural or applied clot was dislodged, I'm surprised the doc thought massage was ok. Only after the doc could see the real arm, in spite of the "beautiful" photos, that, with her suggested warm compresses would be ok. Massaging the bruising at a groin insertion site is a definite no-no. Bigger artery.
Arteries are harder to stop the bleeding than veins. Veins are where most IVs and blood draws are done, even though they can also bruise easily.
Was the issue addressed about stopping any aspirin for a day or two?
Hang in there, you two!
DrumMajor
Actually, we were just massaging the areas that were hard. I asked her about aspirin and she said he should keep taking the small dose.
DeleteThe exit instructions said:
"Instruct patient to report any symptoms other than slight tenderness at the site or tingling of the fingers and hand for up to three days." (Oh wait! This does qualify. Missed this one. I just read the 911 part. I'm glad we went in and had it checked.)
"If bleeding does not stop after 10 minutes or if there is a large amount of bleeding and spurting, call 911 immediately. Do not drive yourself to the hospital."
Oh dear, poor Art and poor you. I'd have been freaking out too.
ReplyDeleteDavid bruises like this. Doc changed his meds. He changed dos. Still bruised. I fear it's permanent. Too scary!
ReplyDeleteIt looks painful, but I did have to laugh at your different response! Mine would have been more like yours, I'm afraid. Good to get it seen and be reassured all is well.
ReplyDeleteHow dramatic that looks. Hopefully Art will be on the mend soon. Neither of us panic, though perhaps it would be better if one of us did!
ReplyDeleteHoly cow. I'm glad one of you is managing the problem.
ReplyDeleteYes, unfortunately some people bruise BIG TIME!! as your dear Art did. Oy -- bet that took a few years off your life!
ReplyDeleteHe doesn't often bruise much. I just remember one time when he donated blood, there was quite a bit of bruising, but this was awful.
DeleteDonating blood is also out of a vein. Cath sites are poked into arteries. With older thinning layers of skin, it's much easier to bruise with any pokes. With less body fat and thinner diminished fat within the skin layers, we get to see where blood gooches around after pokes much easier!
DeleteDon't step on Art for awhile. DrumMajor
Is he on blood thinners? I have to be very careful to avoid bruising, since I'm on Warfarin.
ReplyDeleteHe takes a low dose of aspirin. I did ask about that, but the cardiologist wanted him to keep taking it.
DeleteOh my....glad it isn't causing him pain... Yikes
ReplyDeleteAs you know, a usual bruise goes from red to bluey-green-purple as time passes. Tell Art to get used to purple soon, as he'll be carrying it around awhile! No arm wrestling for awhile, though. Or was that you twisting his arm?
ReplyDeleteAloha, DrumMajor
I'm going to take photos of all the color changes. That should be interesting for a blog post. :-)
DeleteSince you're wanting to take many photos, I'm so glad they used his arm and not the groin site.
DeleteBruising extending 12-18 inches in all directions from a groin insertion site, up and down the hip, thigh and over the abdomen can't be fixed with any kind of skivvies! That kind of bruising around important parts looks really painful, but it's not.
Cheers, DrumMajor
I think he shouldn't have massaged it, I think it will be fine though.
ReplyDeleteSince you seem to be wondering when the bruising will disappear, plan on it being there for 2-4 weeks, depending on how his body absorbs the bruise. The swelling seems to be going down (part of the purpose of the Ace bandage,) so check for fever, overwarmth of the arm not caused by the warm compresses or resumed swelling. You've done good.
ReplyDeleteBe sure and keep the regular follow-up appointment post-cath.
DrumMajor
That's one ugly looking arm. I would have been alarmed too. You would think if that is normal they would have warned you. We fortunately have 24 hour consulting nurse service. There is always someone on the other end of the line. We used them twice this week.
ReplyDeleteMy mother in law's arm bruising looks like that too after her angiogram. It took about a month for the color to return to normal. So not to worry too much although it is good to have it looked at.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Mun! I'm so relieved to know this.
DeleteOh Kay! I panic to where my other half is concerned. Secretly they appreciate it; it expresses their own anxiety and allows them to externalize it. We do so much for them. Feel better, Art
ReplyDeleteALOHA from Honolulu
Comfort Spiral
=^..^= <3
When my husband had the heart ablation procedure to correct his WPW syndrome arrhythmia, the purple dye spread all the way down from his groin to his knees, sometimes it could go to the ankles he was told. It was the funniest sight.
ReplyDeleteL...w
It's still unnerving me to see his purple arm. I keep wondering about clots and other scary things even though the cardiologist reassured me that it would heal just fine. I'll feel better when we go for the follow up on Tuesday.
DeleteYikes!!!! I've get all sorts of tests that involved with catheters and assorted other needles but I've never seen one like that! I can see why you're concerned. It scares the heck outta me!
ReplyDeleteGood heavens!!! I would have had an absolute fit over such a sight. My husband is like Art. He would not want to bother the doctor or would also downplay the condition. I think they should have prepared you better. I freak out so easily. If that had been my arm, we have been in the ER in a flash.
ReplyDeleteLordie -- I have had enough surgeries and procedures to know from those photos that is NOT right and I hope it gets resolved right away -- I'm with you about mildly freaking….best wishes…….
ReplyDeleteScary, scary, scary. Good for you for following up.
ReplyDeleteBlessings....
ReplyDeletewow, that does look frightening.
Hope all goes well with the healing.
stay blessed.
rhapsody
I'm so sorry. This is scary, isn't it?
ReplyDeleteI attended my first husband's funeral yesterday. it's pretty tough.
(ツ) from Cottage Country Ontario , ON, Canada!
Oh Jenn, that is very difficult indeed. I'm so sorry.
DeleteThinking about you and Art.
DeleteYou are right to be anxious about Art's arm and the colouring of it, which is too strange. I hope he will soon recover and that you remain calm, Kay. Stress is dangerous for your health. I am thinking of you.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment. Since I came home back in Holland, it has been raining every day. We have a lot of wind too. England has had so much rain that many people are evacuated because of the flooded areas.
I am sorry I have been out of touch lately. I hope all is getting better for you and Art. That had to be scary. I think chocolate helps bruises resolve faster!!
ReplyDeleteChocolate would work for me, that's for sure. However Art is not a big chocolate fan. I've missed you, Mare. I hope everything is going well.
Delete