Connect
← Return to Paralyzed Diaphragm
Discussion
Comment receiving replies
Hi my name is Brian. I have been reading posts here about being diagnosed with a paralyzed diaphragm and the procedure to help. I was diagnosed with unilateral diaphragm paralysis of my right side after being struck by a large tree branch that crushed the right side of my chest.
About 2 months after the accident I started physical therapy and that’s when I noticed that I couldn’t catch my breath after exerting myself. I was referred to a pulmonologist and was administered a breathing test and my outputs were very low. From there I was given sniff test and that’s when I was diagnosed with a paralyzed diaphragm of my right side. The procedure was quite quick. It took the doctor about 15 seconds to diagnose my problem.
I was given the option to go see a thoracic surgeon at the University of Iowa Hospitals to discuss a procedure called diaphragm plication to help me breath.
Since I was a healthy 50 year old man prior to the accident I decided to go through the procedure because I couldn’t even climb a flight of stairs without being completely out of breath.
I had the diaphragm plication surgery about 5 months after my diagnosis and I would like to share with those my experiences after having the surgery.
The first thing I remember when waking up after a 4 hour surgery was the sever pain I was in. Thankfully they placed something in near my spine (which I can’t remember the name) that helped numb the surgery area. I had a chest tube inserted into my back to drain the chest cavity and I am so glad that they had placed a catheter in to drain urine. It was 3 days of severe pain and getting up a couple times a day to walk wasn’t fun. I had the chest tube removed and they took me off the pain reliever drip to my spine on day 4. I believe I was released on day 6. Just have a nice riding vehicle and avoid bumps on the way home. It took me at least 6 weeks to recover.
That surgery was 3 1/2 years ago and I am still debating whether it was worth it. I did gain some lung capacity back, but I still am breathing hard when I climb a flight of stairs. I still deal with pain everyday in my lower chest area. It feels like I have a rolled up towel under my rib cage that runs from the front to the side. I have a hard time bending over to pick something up or to even put on a pair of pants. I don’t want to scare anyone off from having this type of surgery but I felt I needed to share my experience. I researched this surgery myself and there just isn’t much out there to help you make a decision.
I hope this information is helpful to anyone who is considering this type of surgery. I am willing to answer any questions that may come up about this condition. Good luck to all of you in the posts before me. I wish I consulted the Mayo Clinic for a second opinion.
Replies to "Hi my name is Brian. I have been reading posts here about being diagnosed with a..."
Hey Brian this is John, I saw your post about your paralyzed right diaphragm and the surgery you had. I also have a paralyzed right diaphragm. Been dealing with it for just over a year. I have done some research on the diaphragm plication surgery from the Cedars Sinai hospital in Los Angeles. Cedars was the only place I could find close to where I live. From there website the information that I got, they are saying the surgery is done by minimally invasive means. That does not sound like what you went through. Maybe things have changed since the three years since you had the surgery done. I might have to check with Cedars and get some more info. Physically I'm not doing to bad, I still swim as much as I can, go for walks and do other exercises. I also do breathing exercises. I'm trying like hec to stay ahead of this thing without surgery. Good to hear from you. I hope things get better, take care
I was recently diagnosed with a right paralyzed diaphragm and really appreciate reading about your experience. The doctor recommends plication surgery; but I read a journal article that said people get around
35% improvement in breathing. I'm wondering if I could get that from learning how to breath more efficiently. A different problem that makes me think I should have the plication surgery is my stomach is moving into my chest cavity because the diaphragm isn't holding it back. I will have a followup appointment with the doctor soon. He wants me to lose weight before the surgery, which I'm working on.
Connect
@bigbdk Thanks for sharing your story. I don't have experience with your condition, but I do have thoracic outlet syndrome that has caused some breathing problems for me that were physical because the left side of my ribs didn't expand as much, and that along with my allergies caused breathing issues. Thoracic outlet syndrome can be caused by injuries like whiplashes and car accidents, and it is a compression of nerves and vessels as they pass through the brachial plexus and in-between the ribs and collar bone. Your type of injury might also do this. I also had cervical spine surgery and I am in physical therapy for TOS. My therapist also does myofascial release which helps open up the tight fascia that is holding everything too tight, and it helps break up the fascial scar tissue from my surgical path that is close to these areas in my neck. MFR can help a lot of issues that cause nerve entrapments and helps get the body moving properly and in a better alignment. It might possibly help you. The fascial paths can be tight areas that pass through your entire body. MFR work has helped me a lot, and recently I got my ribs to move better and stopped some of the tingling in my arms that is positional. I started a discussion to collect a lot of information at this link.
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/myofascial-release-therapy-mfr-for-treating-compression-and-pain/
Thoracic Outlet Syndrome links-
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/thoracic-outlet-syndrome/symptoms-causes/syc-20353988
https://www.painscience.com/articles/respiration-connection.php
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3501918/
https://www.hindawi.com/journals/scientifica/2014/248163/
https://trainingandrehabilitation.com/how-truly-treat-thoracic-outlet-syndrome/
https://share.upmc.com/2016/08/thoracic-outlet-syndrome-symptoms-and-causes/
My therapist is an expert level trained in the John Barnes methods. If you have questions, let me know. It takes patience to work through the layers, but the results are worth it. You can search for an MFR therapist at this link. http://mfrtherapists.com/