Mild pain and a numbness : Morning, In... - British Heart Fou...

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Mild pain and a numbness

8 Replies

Morning,

In April this year, I had a quadruple bypass op, and I was wondering if anyone else has experienced a lack of feeling (numbness) in the leg and the chest (left side). I wasn't told to expect this so thought I'd ask my GP, who couldn't give me an answer.

I assumed it was going to be a temp thing, however, not so sure now.

I've also been getting some pain around the lovely scar :) on my leg but again going to assume this is normal.

8 Replies

Hi I had a quintiple bypass April 2018 my chest is still numb on left side of scar.also the scar on my leg is also numb.The scar on my arm is lovely without any numbness,only itching when I overdo it.I believe we just have to be patient,after all it was a big operation.I am just grateful to be back working full-time and training like I used to.

in reply to

Thanks for the rapid reply, its comforting to know its not just me :), I've never been all that patient but you're right, its going to take time.

All the best and thanks again

MichaelJH profile image
MichaelJHHeart Star

Hello and welcome to the forum! I found six months was a real turning point as although generally people are making good progress at twelve weeks. I had real problems with my left hand and my GP said speak to the cardiolgist who said speak to your GP. The problem was the ulnar nerve that runs through the shoulder to the fingers - it sometimes gets nipped as they prise your sternum apart. Whilst I thought everything was OK this morning I went out without gloves and the two most affected fingers felt colder than the rest.

Things improve over time but may never return to normal. A friend had a total knee replacement two years ago and still had some numbness in that area. Another friend, a keen cyclist, had a triple but found the leg scar stopped his return to active cycling for nearly a year. Good luck!

invictaAlec profile image
invictaAlec

Davetaff,

After my CABGx3 last year I was somewhat puzzled by the number of people on the forum who complained about the area around their chest wounds being ultra sore/delicate/sensitive.

I thought "That's odd, mine is as numb as hell on the left side!" Gradually one or two others did reply saying they were fellow members of the numbness brigade. More than a year later its much better but I don't think it'll ever return to absolute normality.

A good example showing that we all mend differently Dave.

All the best.

Alec.

Gail1967 profile image
Gail1967

Hi - I definitely have a numb chest and soreness around scar but my gp said that can take a year to settle. I had a vein harvesting technique that left me with just 2 scars top and bottom of leg so can’t say about leg scar.

Thank you for all the responses, it would seem to be nothing out of the ordinary, I think I can relax a bit now. :)

Thank you again

Beith profile image
Beith

I had a triple bypass four months ago. There is still a small area of numbness on the left side of my chest which I assume is due to the fact that the left internal mammary artery was used for one of the bypass grafts. It's a lot better than it was a couple of months ago so I'm hoping it'll be back to full feeling eventually. There's no numbness in my leg where the saphenous vein was removed. There is a small area of numbness on my wrist where the radial artery was removed; this has improved hugely since the operation. Again, I'm assuming that when the wound finally heals, that full feeling will return. However, if there is any residual numbness, that's a small price to pay! Best wishes,

shopman profile image
shopman

Doesn't matter how long ago your op was it can still make its effects known down the line. I have 3 fingers on my left hand that still tingle now more than 20 years later.

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