As part of my tireless effort to personally fund the college
education of the children of every doctor in the Richmond Region, I continue to
pursue a remedy for the chronic cough y’all have come to know and love.
Over the past few years, I have been diagnosed with asthma
and sleep apnea, both of which contribute to the causes of the cough. However,
the doctors have now identified GERD as
the most likely cause of my cough (and possibly to my asthma).
You may know that a few weeks ago, a gastroenterologist
performed a esophageal
endoscopy to implant a small
transmitter inside my esophagus to measure the ph levels just above my
stomach. (Yes, the same doctor who made me eat radioactive
eggs in March.) As part of the endoscopy, the doctor found
that I have a hiatal
hernia, which is the cause for my severe GERD. Unfortunately, medication
alone does not seem to be alleviating the symptoms and the cough comes back
frequently.
Today, as a special birthday present to myself, I went
to see a specialist surgeon about the next step in possible solutions. She gave
me the gift of telling me that I needed surgery to repair the hiatal hernia.
So, in July, I will be having a Laparoscopic Nissen
Fundoplication. Despite its name, it is not “fun” and does not involve
winning a new Nissan Altima. In actuality, the surgery can be summarized as
tying a knot in my stomach (see video below or a shorter 36-second video).
The surgeon has told me that the recovery will require me to
be out of the office for 1-2 weeks. I have arranged for the surgery to take
place on Thursday, July 19, with the plan for me to return to work on Monday,
July 30.
The good news is that the surgery will force me into losing
more weight, which should enhance the progress I’ve made with my asthma, sleep
apnea, and ruptured
spinal disc. As a result of the surgery, I will be on a liquid-only diet
for 10-14 days, followed by a soft food diet for an addition 14-21 days.
Problem: Hiatal hernia
Surgery – Short Video (0:36)
Surgery – Longer Video (4:42)
More
detailed animated video that discusses the problem and the surgery
(Note: Although the date and tone of this blog post make it appear that it was written on June 12, it was actually written on July 26 because I need to improve my blogging timeliness.)
(Note: Although the date and tone of this blog post make it appear that it was written on June 12, it was actually written on July 26 because I need to improve my blogging timeliness.)
