Loose sternum wire

[Heartwife]

Good morning. I am new to this site and am looking for some advice and support. My husband had a triple bypass in August and has been making good progress. He had a chest x-ray on the advice of the cardio rehab team since he was getting some "popping" in his chest. This has shown that one of the chest wires has come loose. We are waiting for a call to advise on next steps but does anyone else have experience of this? He is understandably anxious. Thank you.

[MichaelJH Heart Star]

Hello and welcome to the forum! The "popping" is of slight concern and you need a proper diagnosis for this. If people overdo things or are unlucky you can get an instability in the breast bone. This, though, often settles down by taking it easy for a few months. There are a number of sternum wires (I have 8) so one loose one is not particularly relevant. They are in place for the healing process and are sometimes removed if there are issues. Hope your husband's issue is of no real significance.

[Heartwife in reply to MichaelJH]

Thank you. It's frustrating because he has been doing all the right things post-surgery. I do appreciate though that it's a long recovery process.

[MichaelJH Heart Star in reply to Heartwife]

Yes, I think a lot depends on the level of fitness before. I was unwell for around 18 months before my quadruple. Although I healed fast I only felt I turned a corner after three months. At month four still fighting for fitness and stamina.