Acromegaly Support Group

Acromegaly (from Greek akros "high" and megas "large" - extremities enlargement) is a hormonal disorder that results when the pituitary gland produces excess growth hormone (hGH). Acromegaly most commonly affects middle-aged adults and can result in serious illness and premature death. Join the group to discuss symptoms, diagnosis, and treatments.

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Endocrine System
/ Acromegaly Support Group

3 Days Post-op

KatesGram
KatesGram
Just a quick update after endonasal removal of my microadenoma. I awoke with very little pain and noted that my symptoms of brain fogginess and joint and muscle pain were almost gone.

Overall< I am now having some sinus pressure type headaches especially behind my eyes -- left worse than right and I get eye strain really easily and some photophobia.

I am on hydrocortisone and it is upsetting my stomach and sleep somewhat but I guess they will taper this soon.

The sinus rinses ARE my new best friend as so many others have posted. It is just not natural to have this much gunk in your nose and NOT blow it but I'm keeping a sense of humor.

I have a great neurosurgeon and ENT team but the hospital care was horrible. I have a large painful bruise on my forehead that no one knows how it happened, the nurses pulled out my Foley catheter with the balloon inflated, and I could not get good pain control from my nurse on the overnight shift. I was having some jaw spasms. I do get the sense that because we don't have a big gash on our heads that no one thinks that we just had brain surgery.

I'm very pleased to have this behind me and I think that soon I'm going to feel better than I have in years. Thanks for your support on this sight!
eliza6
eliza6
That's great to hear - I wish you a very speedy recovery.

One thing that I noticed while I was recovering that the headaches and sinus pressure were worse if I spent a lot of time during the day watching TV or using a computer. Once I limited my technology use, I felt much better.

Hope to hear about the rest of your recovery soon!
KatesGram
KatesGram
Thanks so much for the tip eliza6. I may be getting too much screen time. I'm rather hyper and the steroids are making it worse -- I need to find another activity to bide my time with than the computer.
Aworriedwife
Aworriedwife
A possible explanation for your forehead is the halo they put you in during surgery to prevent your head from moving. I have no idea why, but this doesn't ever seem to be mentioned to patients. My husband awoke with pain and bleeding from the sites were the halo was screwed into his head.

Good luck with your recovery.
KatesGram
KatesGram
I did find out that my surgeon done not apply a halo for head stabilization. He uses a horseshoe headrest. The pain and marks were apparently cause by the headband applied to my head for the neuronavigation or GPS tracking portion of the equipment. It was applied too tightly and has caused pain and the forehead and temporalis muscles -- esp with eating or talking. I'm treating it somewhat with muscle relaxants every 6 hours and Tylenol #3. If I could remove this pain -- the rest of my body feels pretty darn good!!

I'm tempted to go to the acupuncturist today to try for relief.

Nasal drainage WAY down on POD #7 and I'm amazed that I could breath through my nose from the onset.

Baby steps and thanks for your encouragement!!