Angiogram. Wrist pain question.

[mjames1]

First angiogram, I hardly felt the catheter going in and by day seven my wrist felt normal.

Second angiogram/PCI, different doctor, I felt it more but again by day seven my wrist was normal.

Third angiogram/PCI, same doctor as the second, but I almost jumped off the table as the catheter was introduced because it burned so much. Sore and tender to the touch for two weeks. It is now almost 3 weeks and a little better, but still not normal.

I'm pretty sure the catheter was introduced into the wrist the first time by the attending doctor himself, and the other two times by someone else on the team. Not sure if that was the difference or not. Or maybe, having three catheterizations through the same wrist in a three month period made things worse each time.

Wondering what everyone else's experience of have been when they went in through the wrist.

Jim

[Poorlymum]

My mum had one 2 weeks ago. She is sore and bruised mostly her left arm.

[Wonky_heart]

Sounds very much like me. My first PCI the cardiologist said I had a poor arterial pulse in my right wrist so went for the left one and had no problems. The second PCI, a different cardiologist who decided to 'prove' his skills by getting into the right wrist. It was the worst pain ever. My entire right arm was so painful and no painkillers touched it. Afterwards the nurse wrapped my arm in ice which helped but I was left with a painful wrist and totally unable to pick anything up in that hand. I saw a physio who suggested a wrist support. I tried a few until I found one that helped. Before my third PCI I told the cardiologist what had happened and he said my artery was blocked in my right wrist and that what the second cardiologist was feeling was a narrower ulnar pulse that some people can have on the arterial side (weird). He wrote in my notes never to use the right wrist, but when it came to my third PCI the new cardiologist was adamant that he could only use the right wrist. Thankfully, at the last minute the first cardiologist came in and made him use the left one.

It's now a year since my second PCI and I no longer need to wear the support. I can carry most things unless they are really heavy but I still get some pain at times.

[Carriefarm in reply to Wonky_heart]

What I find really upsetting about this is that the cardiologist was dismissing what you said, and that it was of no importance. It is the arrogance of some doctors that makes my blood boil. Thankfully, you were saved injury, just by pure luck, by the other cardiologist attending, in the nick of time.

[LucyBoo21]

I've had three angiograms but all through my groin. First two were fine, third (two weeks after the second) - it hurt going in but was then OK. However over the next few days, I then developed extreme pain in my side.

After a CT scan I was told I had femoral nerve irritation. It resolved after 3 weeks or so.

I wonder if you've had some irritation too?

[Jedi14]

I had the procedure 4 times, I thought it was relatively pain free in all cases.

However several weeks down the line, I got extreme painf in both arms (since both arms were involved) for a whole week! I knew it was the after effect of the procedures done previously. I still get arm pains sometimes after doing continuous stressful work.

[bee2]

I had my 3rd angiogram after a HA last August, and felt and looked as if I had been butchered. My arm was nearly black and very painful for weeks. The rehab nurse told me to contact my GP as I may have needed antibiotics. I could only speak to a GP on the phone who refused antibiotics. It eventually got better. In Sept this year I got a call from my GP surgery saying my GP got a letter from the Golden Jubilee Hospital he needed to discuss with me. Again it was a telephone call and he wanted to say he had just got my angiogram results from August 2023!