fistula questions....

[TexanSummer]

I don't know if I'm asking questions that have already been answered, but here it goes....& no sorry, I don't know how to make it short & sweet!   

Charles went to meet a vascular surgeon today. I had to work, so his mom took him. When he finally was called to the room....it was just dirty/grungy looking. He took pictures on his phone & even had his mom come into the room with him. Mold on the ceiling, baseboards covered with years of dirt/grime....just seemed to have stopped in the 1960's-1970's & hasn't caught up with today yet....

When the doc came in to talk to Charles about the fistula, doc took bandage off his cath, no gloves or mask, then half-a** replaced it before coughing. Then he tells my hubby that when it came time to remove the cath, it would be done right there in that office....I don't even feel comfortable with that.

Charles now has another appt with a differant surgeon in a couple of weeks....I'm worried a little though. Do they really remove the cath in the doc's office? What do they do to keep the patient from bleeding out? How much longer can his cath last before it causes problems? He is already having discomfort at times & the people at the center don't seem to think much of it.

We wanted to have the fistula done when he was still in the hospital, but it didn't happen. Then we ran into the whole insurance issue (which is still a problem) but luckily KHC kicked in & we can now get back on track.

I'm sure I'm just overreacting, but what can I say? I am not ready to let him go just yet.....he hasn't made me that mad!   

[noahvale]

**

[kellyt]

Ugh!  Definitely go somewhere else!

I don't know about the perm cath removal, sorry.     

[FindingNeverland]

I would even go as far reporting them for having such a unsanitary office and poor hygienics, that just sounds bad.   

[MooseMom]

Did your husband's neph refer him to that particular vascular surgeon's clinic?  If so, it can be a bit of a racket.  I personally would find another vascular surgeon that had no ties with the neph and who was able to keep a sanitary clinic.  That just sounds like a recipe for disaster.

Like noahvale said, it is OK to have the cath removed at the surgeon's office.  That's how my mom had hers removed.

[dyannalw]

I was really worried about going to the office to have my cath removed when the time came. I woke up one morning and went to the bathroom and the cath fell into my lap.  No blood. Not even a drop.  I was lucky they had been using my fistula so I didn't have to have it put back in. But it sure stopped me from worrying about it not that that is the way to go. LOL  Never hurt or anything and the staff at the clinic were shocked that it didn't bleed at all.

[TexanSummer]

Thanks for all the feed back! I just wanted to be sure....he does have an appt with a differant doc in a couple of weeks....unless we can get him moved up sooner   

He is DEFINATLY not going back to that doc again though. His mom even went as far as to say that if it came down to in, she'd find a way to pay for a diff doc herself!
The doc he is going to see next is the one his neph from the hospital reffered him to in the first place, the gross one was reffered by the D center.....

[YLGuy]

I would definitely tell the D center NOT to send anyone there again.

[gothiclovemonkey]

do u live in illinois? lol
that place sounds EXACTLY like the place i went for my fistula! I ended up with MRSA!!!!  ok ok, i dont KNOW thats where i got it from but, i have a pretty good idea... He didnt even wash his hands, put his little stethscope on it, then a few days later im in hospital with MRSA.... granted, i had to have a ton of surgeries and proceedures trying to "fix" the darn thing, but what would u think?
the office, stuck in the 60s, even smells old...
I used to kind of joke about the fact that the doctor has really thick glasses, and crossed eyes, how can he possibly do surgery... my son has ONE crossed eye and cant barely function!
17 proceedure/surgeries and MRSA later, as well as a cath for a quite a few months.... i has fistula

I actually had the cath taken out in an office, of a different doctor! it wasnt that bad, he numbed me, because they had to cut it out, because i had it so long, i didnt feel it, but the sound of it.... yikes!

[onestronglittlelady]

My first catheter didn't last even 6 weeks. My hubby, who had his put in a month before I did, kept picking on me because I continually complained it hurt. The surgeon did a terrible job, and the stitches were so tight as it healed they were ripping through my skin. My 2nd catheter has been going strong since Jan 25th, and it didn't hurt near as much as the first one. It is possible your husbands cathater is causing him pain due to how it was put in.

On another note, my husband and I had our first catheters fail on the same day. He has since had problems with his being plugged. I have not encountered that with mine. After they replaced the catheters our doctor increased the amount of heparin during our sessions. I wonder if that was the cause of the failure in the first place. In speaking with the 2nd surgeon, he said the newer (& cheaper) catheters have more problems. The 2nd ones were the older more expensive models.

Hugs to you and your husband! Hope everything goes well.

[TexanSummer]

GLM - we're in Texas (hence the name...lol) but hubby wishes we were up north...he can't stand the flat region we are in....lmao I guess there's not so great places everywhere....

It is possible your husbands cathater is causing him pain due to how it was put in.

I don't think the way it was put in is the reason....personally I think it's just him being uncomfortable & always having to readjust his sitting/laying positions to make himself as comfortable as he can....he's scared to death that he'll do something to pull it out. He won't play with the dogs unless he's standing up & wrestling with our 6 y/o is pretty much on hold until he gets it removed.
Not to say that I don't believe him when he says it hurts, but I'm sure those are the main contributing factors.

Thanks a lot for your advice & concerns everyone!!! I can't say it enough.....I LOVE THIS SITE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[gothiclovemonkey]

i sort of thought u were in tx, but some times its just the love of the place, u never know lol
and i live up north, and its flat here LOL surroounded by corn.

[pdpatty]

Had my PermCath in for 11/2 years and it was still working when my neph removed it in same day surgery at local hospital. He wanted to make sure my fistula was working before the cath removal.

In this area of Ohio we hear lots of complaints about the hospital,but things could be a lot worse.(I have never had a complaint about the center,doctor or hospital)

[tbarrett2533]

first i would go someplace else
then please before removing the cath, be sure to make sure the fistula is in good working order and I mean two needles, and at the largest size your unit uses (mine is 15 gage)
you just want to make sure that your fistula is as close to perfect  as it can be before removing your cath
my cath was removed in an office, and really no pain at all, and it literally took 5 minutes, then two days later I was in the shower!!!! 

good luck!!!

[jojosmommy]

I agree..go somewhere else!  I didn't have any problems after having my cath taken out, even though I was a little wary about the sanitary conditions of the vascular center I was in.  However, I returned a few months later to the same center for a fistulagram, and then mysteriously turned up with a very bad infection that took a week of IV antibiotics to clear up.  So my advice is to NOT go back there! 

Also, my doctor took 3 weeks to make sure my fistula was working properly before he would let my cath come out.  That's pretty important.  I also had a lot of pain and discomfort from my cath.  I couldn't move without it hurting, and could never find a comfortable position sitting, standing or laying down, so I can definitely relate to your husband's discomfort! Hope he can get the cath out soon!

[TexanSummer]

Well, he got to a different doc & has his fistula surgery on the 21st @ 5:30am.....I will be taking him there, then his mom will meet us there so I can get our daughter to school & I can get to work. I don't want to leave him there & I really want to take the day off, but it's just something we can't afford....at least his mom will be with him through out the day until I get home....so I don't feel as bad having to go to work....just a little bit longer & that blasted cath can go away!!!!!!!!!!!

[Riki]

I wouldn't return to a dirty office.. and no one would have taken the dressing off mine without a mask and gloves on. I just wouldn't allow them to do it

My Neph refused to remove the line in the dialysis unit.  It was done at the hospital, in a room on the emergency unit.  It took him all of 5 minutes, and yeah, the sound was a little gross.  That was almost a year ago, and I tell you, after a year and a half with that stupid line, the novelty of a shower has not worn off.

It took 3 months for my fistula to mature.  Once he's healed, make sure he exercises the arm.  My dialysis nurses gave me a squeeze ball shaped like a kidney.  Squeezing the kidney (*LOL*  loved that thing, thought it was hilarious) helps the blood flow, which makes the vessels bigger in order to shove those drinking straw needles in there.. *L*

[TexanSummer]

Charles had his fistula placed last Thursday in his upper left arm. 3 incisions about 2 inches long EACH! wow....I didn't realize it would be like that! They stapled each one shut.....they really don't care about how it looks do they? LOL there is even one spot on one of the incisions where it could have used 2 staples, yet there is only one & it doesn't go across the whole thing...you can see half of the staple going INTO the incision!
He's been sleeping on the couch with the coffee table next to him so he can put a pillow on it to keep his arm up...too scared to go to bed until it heals more & is less tender....I toss a bit at nite & so does he....bed is not a good idea at the moment.
On Friday (day after fistula), the center told him that there looked like some puss coming from the cath so they gave him a big dose of IV antibiotics. On Monday (yesterday) the center told him that they wanted him to come in early on Wednesday to have his cath replaced "next door"=block or so away...to avoid infection...they took a culture, but don't want to wait for the results.

He's kinda freaking out & he's sure he'll be gone before the end of the year....once 1 thing is done, something else pops up.....that's his thinking
I'm trying to tell him that the cath replacement is not uncommon.....doesn't help though.

[TexanSummer]

I have another question for you wonderful guys & gals.

Charles is having a bit of redness around the staples from his fistula placement a week ago. Is the redness normal?

[rsudock]

if it is very red, with drainage (pus), and super sore...that could mean infection

[TexanSummer]

Not really red....just a little...no drainage of any kind. He's just worried. I tried to tell him that it's probably just irritation.....