How long does it take sternum heal after heart surgery?

If you’ve recently undergone heart surgery, chances are the last thing on your mind is how long it will take for your sternum to heal. But unfortunately, this little bone can have a big impact on your recovery. From sneezing to laughing, any movement that puts strain on your chest can be painful – trust me, I’ve been there.

So, let’s get down to business and explore just how long it takes for this pesky bone to fully heal after open-heart surgery.

What Is The Sternum And Why Is It Important?

For those of you who don’t know what the sternum is (don’t worry I won’t judge), it’s the flat bone located in the center of your chest that connects all of your ribs together. During open-heart surgery, surgeons need access to the heart which means they have to cut through this tough little guy.

The importance of a healthy sternum cannot be underestimated as it helps protect vital organs such as our lungs and hearts while also playing an important role in allowing us to breathe properly. So naturally, ensuring its proper healing post-surgery is crucial.

How Long Does It Actually Takes For The Sternum To Fully Heal?

Okay now let’s talk Turkey! Or should I say “talking bones”. There are many factors at play here from age to weight but generally speaking full healing could take up-to six months or longer which sounds like an absolute eternity(thankfully not literally) ESPECIALLY when all we want do right after our surgeries was feel great again

However saying six-months alone would be making things deceptively simple because theres more into sternal fractures than meets thine eye!

Some studies claim that initial fusion could happen between six to eight weeks which sounds encouraging right? But this is just the beginning, mere baby steps if you will. The real test comes in secondary fusion, a crucial stage that involves the growth of cartilage and bone. This could take anywhere from three to six months, but there have been cases where patients experience discomfort up-to a year post-surgery.

How Can I Help Speed Up The Healing Process?

If you’re like me (and chances are we all are) and impatient for your chest to heal quickly so that you can get back to living life at full speed then rest assured because there are some things that YOU can do to help expedite the surgical recovery process:

Stay Mobile!

Were not saying overexert yourself or join an Iron Man triathlon anytime soon but gentle exercise such walking around comfortably within reasonable limits goes far towards keeping blood flowing stimulating healing it also helps maintain lung function and has been shown modest benefits lengthening lifespan post surgery as well!(WIN WIN)

Keep Your Chest Immobile

While staying mobile may sound somewhat contradictory, trust us here as we explain why.. A phrased referred occasionally during any time spent with more elderly folks “Keep them hands off ma furtniture”, similarly avoiding putting oddly placed weight on your operation site by lifting sometimes heavy objects may be best avoided too!

Anything such as carrying young children or large shopping bags across ones chest should often possibly only happen when sternotomy recovery is far enough behind ye (Thankfully theres always another sucker willing to carry ye stuff)!!

Check In With Your Doctor Regularly

I know booking appointments purely “To see what else they got” isn’t exactly fun — seeing my doctor was never really something I looked forward even before heart surgery… lets be frank nobody does!!

BUT by getting consistent feedback from professionals throughout your entire surgical recovery journey could make aa significant difference in ensuring proper healing and mitigating any further complications that might arise before they become bigger problems.

Get Enough Rest

Probably not common when often ones personality is considered part of thee problem, Putting up thou eyelids and tuning out the world on our occasional longer than normal sleep session can have huge benefits! Like recovery in proper quality sleep which is known to enhance healing processes AND as such definitely should be one aspect of your complete sternotomy surgery plan!

Conclusion

Now while every patient heals differently based on a litany of factors, for example: age, overall health conditions and treatment type amongst other things it’s important to remember that patience is key during sternal healing process . By following simple precautions like trying not to lift overexert yourself lifting objects with heavy weights or carrying them close enough where excess pressure stands chance damage ye bone along their chest area ye give themselves the best possible odds at faster & efficient full recovery(And who doesn’t want that?)

Finally remember,your medical team will always be there!, taking advantage of having them by making use of everything they offer from pain medications post-op support groups tips owerall resources available ensures maximum chances for proper long-term sternum success!

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