TIPS question

Rusty , I've had TIPS done a little over 4 years ago due to refractory ascites . TIPS is a temporary fix typically . My Hepatologist explained that People can see no problems for up to 4 years after surgery , Some will have problems with increased Hepatatic Encephalopathy as a negative response to the surgery immediately afterwards . Typically beyond the 4 year mark they monitor the flow rate at the shunt regularly , The chances of the shunt clogging increase after the four year mark . The shunt can clog much like a stint in heart patients who have clogged arteries , At that point they can attempt to unblock the TIPS . My docs acknowledged that they have seen people go on and live for excess of 12 years without any complications and in some cases have been known to last in patients until they die from natural or unrelated causes . TIPS is not intended to be a permanent fix like a liver transplant . It's to keep you alive and comfortable until the MELD score is risen enough for transplant . A Bridge if you will to transplant .

I passed the requirements and signed the paperwork that released the hospital from damages should the surgery go wrong . They typically install this through the neck with a tool and travel down several internal passages to get to the liver , Once the shunt is placed it is a very precisely situated in the liver . A millimeter off and the surgery can go awry at any part from the journey to the liver to the insertion in the liver . I have spoken to one patients family briefly about the HE complication she suffered , The patient couldn't articulate or function as a normal person so speaking to her was impossible . Severe HE set in immediately after surgery for her . My personal experience has been that of full satisfaction , I saw benefits within 2 months , No more paracentesis , No excessive HE ( Somewhat has decreased if anything ) , Weight gain and muscle mass came back within 6 months . I live a relatively normal life and feel fortunate to have gained a quality of life that could not have existed if I hadn't went through with the surgery . It's a risK and you have to weigh it out carefully . I gladly accepted that risk for a small chance of living without daily pain . It's about quality of life not quantity .



A. Ziffle

Thanks so much for your responses. It's good to know there is a light at the end of the tunnel and it's not necessarily a train! My major concern is that, with the TIPS procedure being a more or less temporary fix, but that could last years, a transplant will not be on the front burner for quite a few years, making it possible that my husband may be too old to have one when the time comes. It's a real balancing act, I guess.

We'll cross that bridge soon enough. Thanks again.

Yep, TIPs can be the answer for a few years or more.. my Mike had one that lasted a few years... Sandia

I've eaten steak tips, didn't know pigs had 'em.

Bad piggie!

I hear your hoof used to be pickled...

 Michele , Nothing wrong with looking at medical statistics and research papers . I did that myself at different phases of this disease also but I completely stopped after awhile . Those statistics don't paint a very good picture typically and only caused me anxiety , I got to thinking about how may times I faced death from nasty car accidents , Getting hit by a dirt bike doing 50mph when I was 12 years old , Jumping off roofs playing " superman " as a kid , Walking around on 6 inch beams 400 ft off the ground at work hung over from the night before . You know I could go on for days giving you examples of why I statistically shouldn't have made it to age 30 much less 45 so all that mess need not apply to me .

" I'm Special " as my mom used to tell me . Not sure if she was being facetious about that but anyhow I got more lives than a cat in a Taiwanese village . Those doctors didn't test a room full of guys like me is my guess . Besides I like getting my medical news from a bunch of people with a sense of humor and real life experience . After all who's more likely gonna tell you if a procedure is gonna hurt ? Doctors kinda tend to use the word discomfort a bit too much , I can't tell you how many times I would have liked to jab one of them with a 2 foot long probe and ask if they considered that a discomfort . Ahhhh , It's just this piggy's two cents but I think I'll stick more to the forum .

A. Ziffle  

Preaching to the choir folks. Love these forums - learned so much more being on here than reading 100s of paper! Keep on sharing.