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Rest easy! I have apnea and I had my second round of open heart in October. In the five days following surgery in the hospital I really felt my apnea. But I hadn't been diagnosed yet! I ended up just keeping the O2 cannula in because my sats were in the 80's. That did the trick. I'm sure those nurses would have loved for me to have my machine with me. Bring it and relax!

Rick

GlowGal wrote:Thank you everyone!! Your responses are helping calm my nerves.

The pre-op questionnaire that I completed asked whether I had OSA to which I answered yes. I also just found out that I will get to meet with the Anesthetist 2 - 3 days before my surgery. I'm going to go prepared with questions.

On top of the fear of being put under I'm afraid of being incubated and having something bad happen to my teeth. I have a small mouth and I don't want to become toothless in the process. I've read horror stories of people losing their teeth and that just adds to my anxiety!

Your anesthesiologist will tell you there Is no chance of loosing a tooth or teeth during gall bladder surgery. Forget about it.

GlowGal wrote:Greetings all.

I suffer from OSA and have been on CPAP for 5 years.

I'm scheduled for gallbladder surgery on January 20th and am absolutely terrified. I've read that people with OSA can have alot of issues with general anesthesia. I've never been put under and am so worried that something is going to happen.

Has anyone had GB surgery with a spinal or epidural rather than a general due to OSA?

I'm losing sleep over this.

Glowgal, welcome to the site. I had my gallbladder out earlier this year and at the time, didn't even know I had OSA, although by then they knew I had a slow heart rate. You can't have GB surgery with a spinal or epidural because the surgery is too high up the body. If you have great anxiety about the anesthesia, call the hospital ombudsman and ask if there is someone you could talk to about your concerns. A family member also had enormous concerns about anesthesia and finding out all in advance what is done, step by step, by the nurse in charge of the area helped her anxieties considerably. My hospital actually asks that you bring your cpap/bipap in, you will use it in recovery. Yes, they want to know that you have this issue, but during surgery, they actually have a tube down your throat which prevents collapse, which is what an apnea is. Don't lose any more sleep over it - call the hospital and they are usually happy to help.

I have to bring my own mask with head gear for surgery. Is that normal? spending 1 night in hospital too.

SewTired wrote:

GlowGal wrote:Greetings all.

I suffer from OSA and have been on CPAP for 5 years.

I'm scheduled for gallbladder surgery on January 20th and am absolutely terrified. I've read that people with OSA can have alot of issues with general anesthesia. I've never been put under and am so worried that something is going to happen.

Has anyone had GB surgery with a spinal or epidural rather than a general due to OSA?

I'm losing sleep over this.

Glowgal, Yes, they want to know that you have this issue, but during surgery, they actually have a tube down your throat which prevents collapse, which is what an apnea is. Don't lose any more sleep over it - call the hospital and they are usually happy to help.

interesting I was suspose to have a sleep study 10 years ago, but didnt have one until a year ago, then another one this year.
i had gb surgery and *i was not diagnosed with sleep apnea at the time and i was under for about 2 hours plus.
after the surgery they told me to breathe, and they were able to monitor my breathing from another room.

not less then hour later i was able to leave the hospital to go home. *laproscopic*

now again i am going to have more surgery, this time though i am diagnosed with sleep apnea, and will bring a mask to sleep. i guess they will provide a machine for me when i spend the night, they will connect whatever tubing they have to my mask. weird they want me to bring my own mask though

..........

moreorless wrote:weird they want me to bring my own mask though

Not really. It's better than trying half a dozen of their masks and not finding one that will work for you.
There's no certainty that they will have the mask you prefer or even one close to it.
I would much rather bring my own mask so that I knew for sure I would be using something I liked and was used to.

When I had my last surgery, I was told to bring my machine with me. I used it while in the hospital (3 nights).

If you're nervous about it, ask to speak to the anesthesiologist ahead of time. I'm sure (s)he can set you at ease. Also, take your CPAP with you.

BTW, make sure that you have a CPAP packing list ahead of time. It's very easy to forget something if you pack at the last minute (ex. mask cushion, connector, headgear, power cord, etc.)

my wife goes in for gallbladder surgery next monday ... she was told to bring her machine and mask.
it is outpatient surgery ... home the same day... the machine is for use in recovery room. during surgery they usually insert an airway ... so no need for cpap there .
I also am a little concerned about anesthesia ... it can sometimes cause memory problems .... they adminster a drug to prevent memory of the surgery ... which sometimes can cause continuing problems

grayghost4 wrote:my wife goes in for gallbladder surgery next monday ... she was told to bring her machine and mask.
it is outpatient surgery ... home the same day... the machine is for use in recovery room. during surgery they usually insert an airway ... so no need for cpap there .
I also am a little concerned about anesthesia ... it can sometimes cause memory problems .... they adminster a drug to prevent memory of the surgery ... which sometimes can cause continuing problems

oh, I wouldn't worry, Gray... you're unforgettable

grayghost4 wrote:my wife goes in for gallbladder surgery next monday ... she was told to bring her machine and mask.
it is outpatient surgery ... home the same day... the machine is for use in recovery room. during surgery they usually insert an airway ... so no need for cpap there .
I also am a little concerned about anesthesia ... it can sometimes cause memory problems .... they adminster a drug to prevent memory of the surgery ... which sometimes can cause continuing problems

GG,

What you are referring to is Versed, which is usually administered before the surgery, to block out memories of what happened and allegedly to calm anxiety. You and your wife might want to request that this medication be skipped.

As an FYI, when I met with the anesthesiology resident before my septoplasty two years ago and expressed concern about having cognitive issues, she recommended that I not take it. I was going to ask that it not be given but having official backing from her really helped.

Until they were ready to take me to surgery, I kept listening to a guided imagery recording which really helped.

Best of luck to your wife and I hope she has a speedy recovery.

moreorless wrote:

SewTired wrote:

GlowGal wrote:Greetings all.

I suffer from OSA and have been on CPAP for 5 years.

I'm scheduled for gallbladder surgery on January 20th and am absolutely terrified. I've read that people with OSA can have alot of issues with general anesthesia. I've never been put under and am so worried that something is going to happen.

Has anyone had GB surgery with a spinal or epidural rather than a general due to OSA?

I'm losing sleep over this.

Glowgal, Yes, they want to know that you have this issue, but during surgery, they actually have a tube down your throat which prevents collapse, which is what an apnea is. Don't lose any more sleep over it - call the hospital and they are usually happy to help.

interesting I was suspose to have a sleep study 10 years ago, but didnt have one until a year ago, then another one this year.
i had gb surgery and *i was not diagnosed with sleep apnea at the time and i was under for about 2 hours plus.
after the surgery they told me to breathe, and they were able to monitor my breathing from another room.

not less then hour later i was able to leave the hospital to go home. *laproscopic*

now again i am going to have more surgery, this time though i am diagnosed with sleep apnea, and will bring a mask to sleep. i guess they will provide a machine for me when i spend the night, they will connect whatever tubing they have to my mask. weird they want me to bring my own mask though

..........

Hmm, I would bring your own machine. I was wrongly told I couldn't when I had my septoplasty in 2015 and stupidly complied. The reason I say stupidly was due to a five hour wait to get a room after my surgery, there wasn't a machine for me when I arrived at my room. Needless to say, it was a big hassle. Anyway, I ended up raising a big fuss and was told that while they discourage people from bringing their machine, they don't forbid it which I felt was still BS.

Best of luck with your surgery.

grayghost4 wrote:my wife goes in for gallbladder surgery next monday ... she was told to bring her machine and mask.
it is outpatient surgery ... home the same day... the machine is for use in recovery room. during surgery they usually insert an airway ... so no need for cpap there .
I also am a little concerned about anesthesia ... it can sometimes cause memory problems .... they adminster a drug to prevent memory of the surgery ... which sometimes can cause continuing problems

It is an outpatient surgery if they can do the surgery laparoscopically. Unfortunately, there are times when the surgeons get in there and find obstructions (adhesions in my case from prior surgeries) and have to do the fully open gallbladder surgery.

It's still very safe, you are just left with a much larger 12" scar and you will be in the hospital for a few days recovering followed by a longer recovery period at home.

I've had past surgeries that were inducing anxiety and was never turned down for something to relax me before the operation.

I actually kinda like the OR, you get nice warm towels draped on you and the OR teams seem to really have their game plan down. If anything, it's the aftercare that you need to watch out for.

Gotta bring the ol' cpap.

I've never made it out the door the same day with outpatient procedures, including the lapro-gallbladder.....can't process the drugs out of me fast enough, always too giddy and unbalanced to navigate around.

Hopefully your wife gets out the same day. The lapro-gallbladder is pretty cool with very little pain. I didn't take anything after the surgery for pain because there was only mild discomfort.

Thank you all for the kind words of encouragement ... I am confident the all will go well for my wife.