i had an aura since surgery....help!

[lohoppie]

My name is Laura ....Im 34 and I had minimally invasive mitral repair on 12/13 at Brigham n Womens in Boston MA....ever since I have come to I have had an aura and a partially numb foot. The aura is constant and does not change...it is like a flasing light which disrupts my vision and makes it difficult to read, watch tv, type like im doing now. I have had migraines in the past which always begin with an aura...the aura I have now is not as severe as I would get with a migraine and I dont get the headach....thank god. I have been to an eye doctor who does not think it is my eyes....I have had an MRI which was fine. Everyone acts like they have never heard of this yet when I did a search on this site it seemed as though alot of people experience it. Im so frustrated and scared that it is not going to go away. Im going to the neurologist today to see if we can treat this as an optical migraine....however Im scared of the medications they use for this.....did anyone have an aura that stayed constant....and if so did it go away? also has anyone tried the medications for optical migraines and did it work? I would appreciate anyones input because I feel like the doctors seem to have no clue at all.....my surgeon from Boston had no advise at all.

[carista]

I also had optical migranes about once a month before my surgery, and after my surgery I didn't have a constant aura, but I had aura's over 10 times a day for probably about 2 weeks after surgery. I also wouldn't get the headache, just the aura. I was thinking it was either from one of the drugs I was on, because once I was down to only taking 2 instead of 5 different medications, that's when they seem to go away. Either that or I was thinking it was from the anesthesia. The aura's seemed to be a little different than the ones I got before surgery. Sometimes they were circular squiggly lines and sometimes it would take half my vision away and they would last anywhere from a couple seconds, to 10-15 mins.

Sorry that's all the help I can be, I've never heard of it being constant. Have you asked your cardio or surgeon about it?

Good Luck!
Carista

[Emma]

My husband Jason is not a heart patient, but he does suffer from auras. He used to get migraines a lot but now just simply gets the flashing lights but no headache. Not a lot of help to you I know but just to say it happens to non heart patients too.

Hope it sorts itself out soon
Love Emma
xxx

[Emma]

My husband Jason is not a heart patient, but he does suffer from auras. He used to get migraines a lot but now just simply gets the flashing lights but no headache. Not a lot of help to you I know but just to say it happens to non heart patients too.

Hope it sorts itself out soon
Love Emma
xxx

[catwoman]

I've had optical migraines since my MVR -- they started while I was still hospitalized and my surgeon couldn't understand what I was describing. My father did, though; he also has them and visited a neuro-ophthalmologist once about his. My dad has a right bundle branch block, but I don't know if that's the cause of his migraines. Neither of us have headaches with our auras.

A friend who is a retired professor of optometry (and whose mom has a St. Jude) told me optical migraines are due to disruptions in blood flow.

Last month, I had one come on when I started judging at a cat show in Columbus, Ohio. I was able to see OK for the first couple of cats. Then I told my clerk that we would have to take a very short break. I got through the rest of the cats already in the ring (perhaps 10) and waited about 20 minutes until I could see OK again.
When I get one at work, I just take a very short break until I can see my computer monitor again.

[lohoppie]

i just left my neurologist and he prescribed a med called calan which is used on optical migraines however he doesnt think that is what i have because it has been constant for 4 weeks...this med lowers blood pressure and im already running real low so im not sure if ill be able to take it. thanks for any and all input....this process has been frustrating and depressing...i want my vision back!

[catwoman]

Calan is same as verapamil. Seems to be prescribed for arrhythmias, and perhaps that's what your doctor thinks is going on in your case. Hope that works for you.

The optical migraines I have were quite frequent right after my surgery and now are sporadic. I have seen one explanation for the optical migraines, but don't want to repeat it because I could be misinterpreting it.

[bvdr]

Hi, I get the atypical migraines as well. My PCP said he does not call what I describe as optical migraines because there are other things that almost always occur simultaneously such as some numbness in my face, the feeling that my speech isn't as clear, sometimes stuffiness in my nose, and the feeling that I'm walking on a surface that is a bit slanted. I rarely get any headache with it but if I do it is only mild. I have had experience with this for many years but it had really almost faded away until I had OHS. I was started on Imitrex in the hospital and used that with little improvement for several months. Then I was put on Calan but I didn't tolerate it and it didn't seem to help either. Recently I was at a neurologist concerning another matter and mentioned the atypical migraines. She said the drug(nortriptyline) she was prescribing for the other problem was also used for migraines. I have not been migraine free since I began it but I do think the frequency has decreased.

I never had an aura that didn't go away. Even at the worst period of time the aura would go away but sometimes just hours later would be back. When I have one of these migraines people around me have no idea. I work around it and change what I am doing for a while or take a short break for 20-30 minutes.

I hope you get to the bottom of it since I know how distressing this must be for you.

[lohoppie]

you said you couldnt tolerat the calan.....wht did you mean by this....if i go on it i will start on 40 mg and work my way up ...what did you start on....did it help at all?

[Phyllis]

Hi Laura,
Dick also had his surgery at Brigham and we are neighbors- New London- although we are in Florida right now. I can't believe that they dismissed you from Brigham without coming to a conclusion about this. Have you been back in contact with your surgeon there?
Hope you get a good resolution and get on with an uneventful recovery.
Best Wishes,
Phyllis

[bvdr]

you said you couldnt tolerat the calan.....wht did you mean by this....if i go on it i will start on 40 mg and work my way up ...what did you start on....did it help at all?

I think I started the Verapamil (Calan) at 240mg a day. I was also on a lower dose for a while. I have a tendency to get into CHF and Verapamil was giving me trouble in that area. You are starting at a nice low dose and increasing just until you reach a point that helps you sounds like a really good idea. My dad was on Calan for many many years for atrial fib and it never gave him any trouble at all. It all depends on the individual. I'm not sure it really helped me with the migraines through anyway.

[Atlanta Sweetheart]

I had mitral valve robotic surgery in July. Almost from the day I got home I had auras several times a day for at least 4 weeks or so. I also had a numb spot on the bottom of my foot! I talked to the surgeon about this and he said the auras were quite common after surgery, that many people had them. He said it was due to being on the heart/lung machine. My auras left after about 6 weeks and became fewer a day as the weeks went by until they disappeard. I now have one every once in a while. I too used to have terrible migraines. These auras are not accompanied by the pain.

As for the foot, my surgeon had not had anyone else mention this. I personally feel this was due to the connections that were placed in the groin area. I had a tingling sensation (like 1000 needles) when I first stood up after surgery which lasted about 2 days every time I got up, once I walked the needles went away. Later my leg was numb just under the incision. Now when I walk a couple of miles or sit for hours in meetings I will feel a tingling just below the incision. The numbness in my foot took several weeks to go away, it really didn't bother me, it was just odd. It too went away. Good luck with this, I would think yours will go away also.

[lohoppie]

hi neighbor!
Dr Cohn was also my Dr. Im hoping this is a time thing and will go away as time passes...Ive really loved all the feed back Ive gotten on this site...I was begining to think I was all alone with this problem. Other than the foot and aura Im doing really well and Im going back to work on Monday. Take care!

[Kate]

For what it's worth, I had a similiar thing happen after my surgery (frequent auras - not continual but many times per day - after surgery different than those I got with migraines before and Drs acting like they'd never heard of it). As someone else posted, mine went away without medication about 2 months after surgery. Hope you get relief soon! Kate

[geebee]

I would like to welcome you and glad your recovery is going well other than the aura.

That being said, I cannot imagine how frustrating it must be to have a constant aura. I have had migraines since I was eight and, even given the limited time my auras last, my auras last way too long. I feel really sorry and sad for you. How will you be able to return to work with this interuption?

I used to take Calan for heart rate problems and I do not remember it making a difference in my migraine frequency. I hope it works for you but don't be disappointed if it does not.

I would be parked on my doctor's doorstep if I had constand auras. You are taking this very well and I salute you but maybe you need to be more in their faces.

[Kathy Canistro]

Hi Laura,

I can't say that I have experienced any aura, I do see a floating silver dot quite a bit since my surgery, no one can offer any advice on that, and all my doctors can say about my tingly feet is that it is odd. my feet tingle less now than in July, so I can say that after 6 months it has pretty much subsided. All my doctor visits and still no real answers, I was just thinking I had to live with it. Hope yours goes by soon.

Take Care
Kathy

[joanne6]

I have had optical migraines for about 30 years. Thought I was going blind when I had the first one. They seem to come in clusters. None for a while and then frequently for a period of time. I have not had constant aura since the surgery. Can imagine that would be tough to take. I did have them more frequently after the surgery. Had one at work last week. I now work on a computer and it made it tough to work until it passed.
I have never taken any med for it. I also heard that the heart-lung bypass can increase the frequency of the optical migraines. Don't know.
Hopefully, this too will pass with time. Things do get better but it took me at least 3 months to feel somewhat human again.

[KathyH]

Hi, I also have migraines and ocular migraines. I found that after my OHS my aura's were different. Before OHS I would lose part of my vision in one eye, after OHS I often had flashing "bolts" and they were more frequent. They got to be less as time went on. As for medication, over the summer I asked my Dr to change my lopressor to atenolol. I found that that cut my migraines down and decreased the ocular migraines too. Good luck, hope you feel better.
Kathy H.

[KristiinSD]

my feet are okay, but my chest remains sore 6 weeks out.

Kristi
robot-assisted mitral repair
11/30/05

[lohoppie]

for all the input....this has been so frustrating and depressing and just to know that you all have been through similar things and it passed is comforting. Im so glad I found this site....I just wish I had found it sooner.Im going back to work in two days and Im hoping it is not too soon but Ive realised this aura may not go away for awhile so Im going to try to work around it...the good part is that where I work the lighting is quite dim...almost dark, and right now I cant tolerate lights...makes it worse...so work may be a great place for me. Thanks again for all the insight!

[geebee]

I agree that working in a light limited space may make things easier for you. Good luck.

BTW - sure is a cute little one in your avatar!!!!!