Poor or incorrect healing of the breastbone after open heart or valve surgery is a leading cause of patient suffering. Pain and discomfort, while not inevitable, can be reduced with the stabilization of the sternum.
What Is Sternal Instability?
When patients experience discomfort or pain after heart or valve surgery, the cause may be breastbone non-union. Patients suffering from sternum non-union will have a noticeable feeling of instability, clicking, and difficulty breathing. Because the sternum is split from top to bottom during surgery, surgeons put the bones back together either with wires or plates and screws. If these solutions become loose with breathing after surgery, it can lead to sternal instability.
Proactive Prevention
A breastbone that heals correctly gives patients the ability to jump back into normal life activities. For obvious reasons, working to prevent sternum non-union is extremely important. Post-surgery, aggressive coughing and ridding the lungs of discharge so they can inflate properly are necessary techniques for post-discharge respiratory therapy. Because these actions can lead to loosening of wires and plates, it’s important to focus on sternum stabilization.
Pain Reduction
Sternum stabilization devices are applied post-surgery to supply support to the whole chest. They help with all activities that we don’t think involve our chest. After surgery, minuscule movement becomes noticeable. Prioritize sternum stability when standing up, sitting down, going to the bathroom, or when a caregiver is turning a patient in bed. Actions such as sneezing are some of the most difficult to prepare for. Having a sternum stabilization device can make a huge difference in preventing sternal non-union.
If you work with heart surgery patients contact us to learn more about post-surgery sternum stabilization.