We arrived at the hospital in the early morning darkness, got Dad registered and into the pre-operation room. Once the medical staff got him hooked up to monitors they noticed that his oxygen levels were very low. They checked his lungs by x-ray, couldn't really see any major concerns, but decided to switch to a general anesthetic instead of the epidural. (With the general they can control oxygen levels better.)
After the delay, Dad went into surgery at about 9am. By 3 pm the surgery was finally finished, and Dad's surgeon came to talk to Mom and I. He explained that the aorta aneurism repair was very tricky because the bulge was high up on the aorta, right where the arteries lead to the kidneys. The graft for the aneurism was made specifically for Dad and placement was time consuming as it had to be positioned around the renal arteries.
Dad is exceptional (Didn't we all know that!) because he has two arteries going to his right kidney (most people only have one). One of the arteries was narrowing, so they put in a stent.
We visited with Dad after the surgery in the area they call step down. He gets very good care there. Two nurses for four patients and constant surveillance. Dad says he is in very little pain, but he isn't hungry and hasn't eaten yet. He has been up walking. Perhaps he will eat soon and move to the regular ward tomorrow.
