{"id":1540,"date":"2021-09-22T00:21:42","date_gmt":"2021-09-22T00:21:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.heart-valve-surgery.com\/learning\/?page_id=1540"},"modified":"2023-09-27T13:59:38","modified_gmt":"2023-09-27T13:59:38","slug":"pain-management","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.heart-valve-surgery.com\/learning\/pain-management\/","title":{"rendered":"Heart Surgery Innovation: New Approach to Pain Management"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>One of the important questions patients have prior to heart surgery is, &#8220;How painful is it?&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The great news for patients is that many surgeons and medical companies have developed new innovations, techniques and devices to reduce and\/or eliminate pain.<\/p>\n<p>To learn about pain management after heart surgery, we interviewed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.heart-valve-surgery.com\/surgeons\/dr-Marc-Gerdisch-Indianapolis-Indiana.php\">Dr. Marc Gerdisch<\/a>, the Chief of Cardiac Surgery at Franciscan Health in Indianapolis, Indiana. During his 25+ year career, Dr. Gerdisch has performed over 6,000 cardiac procedures and more than 4,000 heart valve operations. At HeartValveSurgery.com, Dr. Gerdisch has successfully treated over 100 patients.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/u_9SCm-A5MI\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>Key Learnings About Pain Management<\/h2>\n<p>The key learnings that Dr. Gerdisch shared during our interview are actionable and could be very helpful for patients who may want to discuss these innovations with their medical teams.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Dr. Gerdisch and his team have developed a unique &#8220;Enhanced Recovery After Cardiac Surgery Program&#8221; that takes a holistic approach to pain management.\u00a0 The program includes recovery considerations including nutrition, breathing techniques, and stretching to diminish patient discomfort and immobility following heart surgery.<\/li>\n<li>Today, most of Dr. Gerdisch&#8217;s procedures use a minimally-invasive approach to heart valve repair and heart valve replacement.\u00a0 Smaller incisions often result in less pain for the patient, shorter stays in the hospital, and enhanced recovery. However, Dr. Gerdisch may use a traditional sternotomy (chest incision) for complex cases (e.g. multiple valve) and re-operations.<\/li>\n<li>Given concerns related to the &#8220;Opioid Crisis&#8221;, Dr. Gerdisch developed patient recovery protocols to minimize patient use of opioids in the hospital and after discharge. Dr. Gerdisch states, &#8220;There\u2019s been a very strong push nationally to get away from the use of opioids. We\u2019ve never liked using opioids because not only are they addicting, but they cause constipation, obstipation,\u00a0and foggy head.&#8221;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1544 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.heart-valve-surgery.com\/learning\/..\/Images\/opioid-crisis-heart-surgery.jpg\" alt=\"Opioid Crisis After Heart Surgery\" width=\"600\" height=\"307\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Nerve blocks (cryoanalgesia) and rigid sternal fixation are two innovations that Dr. Gerdisch use to reduce patient pain. As a result, Dr. Gerdisch has decreased the use of opioids by 87% for sternotomy patients.\u00a0 Today, only 10% of Dr. Gerdisch&#8217;s sternotomy patients are discharged with an opioid prescription.\u00a0 And, 0% of Dr. Gerdisch&#8217;s minimally-invasive patients are discharged with an opioid prescription.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.heart-valve-surgery.com\/Images\/cryoanalgesia-heart-surgery-pain-management.jpg\" alt=\"Cryoanalgesia (Nerve Block)\" width=\"600\" height=\"314\" \/>Nerve block (Cryoanalgesia)<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Rigid Sternal Fixation is &#8220;changing the game&#8221; specific to pain management during patient recovery after heart surgery. Dr. Gerdisch states, &#8220;People who have rigid sternal fixation are much more comfortable and we can let them use their arms. The day after surgery, patients can lift 15 pounds. Patients can lift 20 pounds when they leave. Patients go home and are able to get in-and-out of their chair, and in and out of their \u2013 whatever they need to do.&#8221;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.heart-valve-surgery.com\/Images\/sternalock-blu-chest-plate-healing.jpg\" alt=\"Rigid Sternal Fixation\" width=\"600\" height=\"314\" \/>Rigid Sternal Fixation (SternaLock Blu)<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Frail patients are also benefitting from the Enhanced Recovery After Cardiac Surgery Program. According to Dr. Gerdisch, &#8220;Where 30% of frail patients used to go to some type of extended care facility after discharge&#8230; Now, now only 10% need to go.&#8221;<\/li>\n<li>Unfortunately, about 20% of patients who have a traditional sternotomy experience some form of long-term consequence &#8211; pain, instability, poor healing.\u00a0 Using these new innovations, the chest and the ribs are stabilized immediately.\u00a0 Specific to this new approach to pain management, &#8220;Patients are golfing, bowling, and hitting fast pitch in a few to several weeks. We are changing the recovery process entirely.&#8221;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Here is an insightful video of Dr. Gerdisch&#8217;s patients just a few days and\/or weeks after heart surgery.\u00a0 As you will see and hear, these patients are not experiencing pain.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/jZ3x1dfS1o0\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>This Just In! No Pain or Opioids for Layman Boyd!<\/h2>\n<p>Now, here&#8217;s an amazing coincidence&#8230;<\/p>\n<p>As I am posting this story, I just received a video from Dr. Gerdisch about Layman Boyd&#8217;s experience with pain after a major cardiac procedure. Layman, 57, had a minimally-invasive mitral valve repair surgery performed by Dr. Gerdisch yesterday.<\/p>\n<p>You will see and hear that &#8211; just one day after heart surgery &#8211; Layman&#8217;s early recovery has been pain-free. It should also be noted that Layman is not taking any opioids. Amazing!!!<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/fuRWNZSb88M\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>Many Thanks to Dr. Gerdisch &amp; Franciscan Health!!<\/h2>\n<p>On behalf of our entire patient community, many thanks to Dr. Gerdisch for sharing his clinical experience and research with our community!\u00a0 Also, many thanks to the Franciscan Health team for taking such great care of heart valve patients.<\/p>\n<p>Related links:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.heart-valve-surgery.com\/surgeons\/dr-Marc-Gerdisch-Indianapolis-Indiana.php\">See 120 Patient Reviews for Dr. Gerdisch<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.heart-valve-surgery.com\/cryoanalgesia-pain.php\">Cryoanalgesia &amp; Heart Surgery Pain: What Should Patients Know?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.heart-valve-surgery.com\/learning\/rapid-recovery-protocol\/\">Top 5 Facts About Dr. Gerdisch&#8217;s Rapid Recovery Protocol<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.heart-valve-surgery.com\/heart-surgery-blog\/2019\/11\/13\/sternalock\/\">What Is Rigid Sternal Fixation?<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Keep on tickin!<br \/>\nAdam<\/p>\n<p>P.S. For the hearing impaired members of our patient community, I have provided a written transcript of this video below.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"cms.php","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"class_list":["post-1540","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","category-recovery"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.heart-valve-surgery.com\/learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1540","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.heart-valve-surgery.com\/learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.heart-valve-surgery.com\/learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.heart-valve-surgery.com\/learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.heart-valve-surgery.com\/learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1540"}],"version-history":[{"count":37,"href":"https:\/\/www.heart-valve-surgery.com\/learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1540\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3831,"href":"https:\/\/www.heart-valve-surgery.com\/learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1540\/revisions\/3831"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.heart-valve-surgery.com\/learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1540"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.heart-valve-surgery.com\/learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1540"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}