Information regarding pending robotic surgery

fathersson

Hi All,

It has been a while since I have been here.

Briefly...diagnosed with PC in Dec 09, 1 core hot out of 12 and a gleason 6. Had bone scan and all was great ...a cat scan and a small superficial tumor was discovered on my bladder. Had it removed in February and just checked again this week. So far, so good. Doc is confident that both of these cancers were caught early and predicts a very positive future. That said, I now have my robotic surgery set for May 4th and have a couple of questions. First: My surgery will be at 12 noon I am wondering what normal surgery time is and if ( for those who have had the divinci) you were mostly out of it that night due to pain meds? The second is... I believe my Doc is planning on keeping me overnight.. Is that the norm...did anyone go home without a hospital stay?
The reason I am asking is my wife and I visited this large, well know urban medical center in Jersey today ( we live in semi rural part of state) where my surgeon has scheduled th procedure and to be honest.. the neighborhood scares the heck out of her and she just would not feel comofrtable in going and hangng out while I am in surgery. I will discuss further with Dr..but wondering what my brothers on this site have to offer..

Thanks in advance..

Frank

bdhilton

I had open surgery about 7
I had open surgery about 7 weeks ago but it is normal to spend one or two nights in the hospital after robotic surgery….

Your time sounds like the second surgery of the day...

I do not beliee you should be concerned with the safety of the insode of the hospital?

I am sure we will hear more from youin the upcoming days...so hang on tight and everyting sounds good...best of luck

fathersson

bdhilton said:

I had open surgery about 7
I had open surgery about 7 weeks ago but it is normal to spend one or two nights in the hospital after robotic surgery….

Your time sounds like the second surgery of the day...

I do not beliee you should be concerned with the safety of the insode of the hospital?

I am sure we will hear more from youin the upcoming days...so hang on tight and everyting sounds good...best of luck

Thx
Thx BD. I am sure it is safe in the hospital. Outside..not so. Take care.

Frank

dav5942

fathersson said:

Thx
Thx BD. I am sure it is safe in the hospital. Outside..not so. Take care.

Frank

We had a hotel room nearby
We had a hotel room nearby the hospital the night before(8AM Schedule) and the DW ended up staying with me in the hospital(on the coach) the night of the davinci-was up and walking at noon, spent the night and left at 10am the next morning, the DW drove 50 miles back to our RV at a friends house. Best of luck-Dave

Hoosierdaddy

surgery - my story
My robotic RP was the second on 12/21/09. They wanted me to check in at 8 am so we just left home early that morning. A few hours after I woke up, when the hard-core pain meds wore off, I thought there was no way I was geting out of here for a few days anyway. Recovery came fast however, and 26 hours after surgery they booted me out. Recovery from the surgery comes quickly at home. All in all I would say the worst part of the whole thing was that d**n catheter--so glad when it came out.

jminnj

Surgery
Frank,

My surgery back in January was at 7am. I was actually pretty coherent that evening as after the surgery they were only giving me Toradol (non-narcotic) for the pain. You do need the overnight to let you body start to recover. I did spend the night at the hospital, they got me up bright and early and had me start walking first thing in the AM. I was discharged around noon. Is the surgery in that city about 40 minutes to our east, down rt 280?

I wish you all the best on your surgery. As always, if you have any questions, you know where to find me.

Joe

fathersson

jminnj said:

Surgery
Frank,

My surgery back in January was at 7am. I was actually pretty coherent that evening as after the surgery they were only giving me Toradol (non-narcotic) for the pain. You do need the overnight to let you body start to recover. I did spend the night at the hospital, they got me up bright and early and had me start walking first thing in the AM. I was discharged around noon. Is the surgery in that city about 40 minutes to our east, down rt 280?

I wish you all the best on your surgery. As always, if you have any questions, you know where to find me.

Joe

Hey Joe

Good seeing you. Yes surgery in BI Newark..Great Hospital but it is a bit of a culture shock when you drive in.. Like I say the wife does not want to return. As for me, need to get it done.. The best part is they have the New Davinci there which gives the surgeon even more control and finese. Fortunate for me, the doc I am using teaches the use of the machine to other physicians.

It will be fine just a little more stress.

Best,

FWW

RRMCJIM

fathersson said:

Hey Joe

Good seeing you. Yes surgery in BI Newark..Great Hospital but it is a bit of a culture shock when you drive in.. Like I say the wife does not want to return. As for me, need to get it done.. The best part is they have the New Davinci there which gives the surgeon even more control and finese. Fortunate for me, the doc I am using teaches the use of the machine to other physicians.

It will be fine just a little more stress.

Best,

FWW

I had an early am surgery,
I had an early am surgery, and also spent the nite....the wife slept in the room with me...not a problem...we were in downtown L. A .....cali...not a good area either... be hospital was great..

142

Hosp. Stay
I had my DaVinci early afternoon - the doc had morning clinic hours. I was out by 5 pm, but remember virtually nothing of the evening. I was told it was a longer surgery than usual, as they tried to get it all. There were still lots of positive margins. They had a sleeper sofa or recliner available in the room, and provided an extra of each meal for one person, so had family stay.
I was expected to go home the next day (their standard), but they kept me three days more - I had a lot of nausea, and couldn't manage the walking they wanted to see before they discharged me. Found myself in a heap on the floor a few times.

15thClub

Information Regarding Robotic Surgery
Frank,

Had robotic surgery last June with same Gleason number. The fact that you can have robotic surgery is good news all things considered (that's what my Doc told me last year). Surgery can last anywhere from 2.5 to 4.5 hours; again what my Doc told me. Assuming you have no significant post-op complicaitons that require another nights stay, it's an overnighter and you should be home the next day. Get on your pre-op instructions and get laxatives going when told as it is make post op bowel movements easier. Compared to the other radical procedure, the robotic procedure is more preferable BUT, it's not an easy procedure. Comply with every post op instruction your Doc gives you. Go easy on yourself, your family is going to have to wait on you during that first month post-op,as much as you might feel a greater need to be self sufficient. Best of luck!

jminnj

fathersson said:

Hey Joe

Good seeing you. Yes surgery in BI Newark..Great Hospital but it is a bit of a culture shock when you drive in.. Like I say the wife does not want to return. As for me, need to get it done.. The best part is they have the New Davinci there which gives the surgeon even more control and finese. Fortunate for me, the doc I am using teaches the use of the machine to other physicians.

It will be fine just a little more stress.

Best,

FWW

I know who the doc is, you
I know who the doc is, you are in great hands. I have heard lots of good things about him. Best of luck
Joe

kurt57

15thClub said:

Information Regarding Robotic Surgery
Frank,

Had robotic surgery last June with same Gleason number. The fact that you can have robotic surgery is good news all things considered (that's what my Doc told me last year). Surgery can last anywhere from 2.5 to 4.5 hours; again what my Doc told me. Assuming you have no significant post-op complicaitons that require another nights stay, it's an overnighter and you should be home the next day. Get on your pre-op instructions and get laxatives going when told as it is make post op bowel movements easier. Compared to the other radical procedure, the robotic procedure is more preferable BUT, it's not an easy procedure. Comply with every post op instruction your Doc gives you. Go easy on yourself, your family is going to have to wait on you during that first month post-op,as much as you might feel a greater need to be self sufficient. Best of luck!

My DaVinci Surgery
Frank, I had mine 5 weeks ago outside Orlando, FL. The procedure took about 3.5 hours to complete. Surgery was at 12 noon. I don't remember much about the rest of the day. They did get me up at 1am to walk. My wife stayed overnight with me. I walked alot the next morning and was discharged by 11 am. If fact, they let me just walk out of the hospital. No wheelchair or assistance. Recover has been quick and easy. I didn't take many pain meds but did alot of walking until the cath bag came out 6 days later. I was back to my office job a week after surgery. I am free from any restrictions from my Dr. and actually bowled in my Monday night league last night, just a day less than five weeks out. It is not as difficult as you might imagine. Good Luck and remember to walk, walk, walk.
Kurt

chitown

kurt57 said:

My DaVinci Surgery
Frank, I had mine 5 weeks ago outside Orlando, FL. The procedure took about 3.5 hours to complete. Surgery was at 12 noon. I don't remember much about the rest of the day. They did get me up at 1am to walk. My wife stayed overnight with me. I walked alot the next morning and was discharged by 11 am. If fact, they let me just walk out of the hospital. No wheelchair or assistance. Recover has been quick and easy. I didn't take many pain meds but did alot of walking until the cath bag came out 6 days later. I was back to my office job a week after surgery. I am free from any restrictions from my Dr. and actually bowled in my Monday night league last night, just a day less than five weeks out. It is not as difficult as you might imagine. Good Luck and remember to walk, walk, walk.
Kurt

Very encouraging story - Can you provide more details
I am going my surgery in June. Can you provide the things you did before surgery to prepare and thing you did after surgery to recover. How are the incontinence and ED side effect. What was the protocal you followed and how did they work.

Thanks

fathersson

RRMCJIM said:

I had an early am surgery,
I had an early am surgery, and also spent the nite....the wife slept in the room with me...not a problem...we were in downtown L. A .....cali...not a good area either... be hospital was great..

Comfort zone

Thanks my friend.. I am not worrying about the hospital. My wife s..so all OK if she needs to stay home..as I want her to be as comfortable as me.

Best

Frank

fathersson

RRMCJIM said:

I had an early am surgery,
I had an early am surgery, and also spent the nite....the wife slept in the room with me...not a problem...we were in downtown L. A .....cali...not a good area either... be hospital was great..

Comfort zone

Thanks my friend.. I am not worrying about the hospital. My wife s..so all OK if she needs to stay home..as I want her to be as comfortable as me.

Best

Frank

fathersson

142 said:

Hosp. Stay
I had my DaVinci early afternoon - the doc had morning clinic hours. I was out by 5 pm, but remember virtually nothing of the evening. I was told it was a longer surgery than usual, as they tried to get it all. There were still lots of positive margins. They had a sleeper sofa or recliner available in the room, and provided an extra of each meal for one person, so had family stay.
I was expected to go home the next day (their standard), but they kept me three days more - I had a lot of nausea, and couldn't manage the walking they wanted to see before they discharged me. Found myself in a heap on the floor a few times.

Thx 142
Appreciate the info. You take care of yourself and keep us updated on your situation.

Frank

fathersson

15thClub said:

Information Regarding Robotic Surgery
Frank,

Had robotic surgery last June with same Gleason number. The fact that you can have robotic surgery is good news all things considered (that's what my Doc told me last year). Surgery can last anywhere from 2.5 to 4.5 hours; again what my Doc told me. Assuming you have no significant post-op complicaitons that require another nights stay, it's an overnighter and you should be home the next day. Get on your pre-op instructions and get laxatives going when told as it is make post op bowel movements easier. Compared to the other radical procedure, the robotic procedure is more preferable BUT, it's not an easy procedure. Comply with every post op instruction your Doc gives you. Go easy on yourself, your family is going to have to wait on you during that first month post-op,as much as you might feel a greater need to be self sufficient. Best of luck!

Thank you
Hoping it is an over-nighter so I can get back and lay back and relax on my deck..

fathersson

kurt57 said:

My DaVinci Surgery
Frank, I had mine 5 weeks ago outside Orlando, FL. The procedure took about 3.5 hours to complete. Surgery was at 12 noon. I don't remember much about the rest of the day. They did get me up at 1am to walk. My wife stayed overnight with me. I walked alot the next morning and was discharged by 11 am. If fact, they let me just walk out of the hospital. No wheelchair or assistance. Recover has been quick and easy. I didn't take many pain meds but did alot of walking until the cath bag came out 6 days later. I was back to my office job a week after surgery. I am free from any restrictions from my Dr. and actually bowled in my Monday night league last night, just a day less than five weeks out. It is not as difficult as you might imagine. Good Luck and remember to walk, walk, walk.
Kurt

Great
Wow great turn-around and recovey. Hoping I have similar experience. Like all of us, I think the biggest concern is the continence issue. How are you ( and everyone else who had the surgery) doing with that?

Thanks for the help.

Frank

fathersson

jminnj said:

I know who the doc is, you
I know who the doc is, you are in great hands. I have heard lots of good things about him. Best of luck
Joe

Thanks Joe
You are a good man .. I appreciate the feedback.. Cant say I am looking forward to it..but at this point time to get it done.

Thx

Frank

gumbyrun

fathersson said:

Thank you
Hoping it is an over-nighter so I can get back and lay back and relax on my deck..

7 am surgery
I was scheduled for 7 AM and out by 9:30-10 but in the recovery room until around 12:30 because I requested a private room. They brought in a bed for my wife. I was there 4 nights and she stayed for three.
I would definitely try and get the private room - BCBS paid without any question...the "agreed upon" fee. Don't get me started on that...

142

fathersson said:

Great
Wow great turn-around and recovey. Hoping I have similar experience. Like all of us, I think the biggest concern is the continence issue. How are you ( and everyone else who had the surgery) doing with that?

Thanks for the help.

Frank

continence
I'm probably a bad example (you'll see all my pad evaluations from real experience in other threads), but I was pretty much in free-flow mode (7+ pads a day and a Depends pant just in case)for the first 7-8 weeks after DaVinci. I was pretty much dry at night from day 1, but have had a few accidents.

The improvements are almost unnoticed. You'll likely have periods of getting better, then backslide, but then stabilize, then a week or two later, another plateau. I still use one pad a day, sometimes two, at 6 months out.