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shoulder neck pain after nissen fundoplication

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Posted 10/25/2011 3:55 PM (GMT 0)

I'm 6 days post-op, and continue to have pain in the left side of my neck radiatiating down my shoulders and around my rib cages when I breathe deeply. I also feel some discomfort when I am just sitting. Is this normal? Will it go away? What can I do to help it? I am usually an active person who bounces back pretty quickly from illness/surgery, but this pain has really got me down.

Posted 10/25/2011 6:49 PM (GMT 0)
MWT-
Welcome to HealingWell.

The pain is quite common after this surgery. Most likely do to gas from the surgery. the best thing for it is to walk as much as possible and sometimes gas-x or something similar may work also. I had this with both of my lap nissens. It took about a week ir so for it to go away.

Could also be from the swelling irritating the vagus nerve. When my redo came apart I had that pain from my vagus nerve being irritated.

Welcome to the "wrapped club" also.

Take care,
Bill
Posted 10/25/2011 7:37 PM (GMT 0)
Bill,

Thanks so much for the reply. I have been moving around quite a bit and have been able to move a good amount of gas thru the digestive system. It seems to me that it might be more of a nerve issue. I am just hoping that it resolves in time. I'm excited to be part of an online community that I can share my experience with and learn from, as well!

Posted 10/25/2011 10:25 PM (GMT 0)
Hi there,

I had my op in August. I was lucky in that I did not suffer all the time with that pain but def had spasms of it for around six weeks. If you have had it worse then it might make sense, like Bill says, for it to take a while. From what I understand what you feel is nerve irritation, referred pain from the air they put in during the op. Give it a week or so and if you havent noticed it tapering off speak to your doc for some reassurance. Good luck to you,

Kevin
Posted 10/26/2011 5:51 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks, Kevin. I am looking for reassurance that this terrible pain will go away eventually. I am a very active individual and am scheduled to return to work one week from tomorrow. In the mean time, my doc prescribed some toradol (sp?) to help with the pain. My husband will be bringing it home to me today. I spent a sleepless night tossing and turning because I couldn't get comfortable. Hopefully, tonight will be different.
Karen S
Posted 10/27/2011 4:38 PM (GMT 0)
My GI doctor and now a surgeon think I need this surgery done to me, but I am worried. ... I can't find the thread for pre N.F.
As silly as this sounds, one of my worst worries is not being able to drink water like I notmally do. For whatever reason I am always thirsty and only drink water, but I drink lots at one time. The doctor told me my "new" way I will need to learn to drink...little slow sips. I have been practicing and not doing well. ITs hard to control your thirst when your thirsty.

I am also worried about all the other stuff... I did doctor shop and my GI doesn't care for the procedure, but said, since I vomit in my sleep and it travels to my nose and ears that I have to give in and get it done. :(
Posted 10/27/2011 4:57 PM (GMT 0)
Hi MomWifeTeacher,

The shoulder pain will definitely go away.  When I was contemplating the surgery, I just couldn't figure out how surgery on my stomach could lead to shoulder pain.

I found that the amount of pain I had was directly related to how much walking I did.  The more I walked, the less pain I had.  I started walking in the hospital at the suggestion of a nurse who was taking care of me.  She suggested I walk whenever I got up to use the bathroom.  I was walking laps around the hospital floor/halls as soon as my anesthesia wore off.  My son came to visit, and rather than talk from my bed, I asked him to take a walk with me.  In the beginning I had to bring my IV pole along for the ride, but it wasn't really a problem.

At home I just walked all around--into every room, back and forth.  I was fortunate to have a treadmill, so I got on that at a slow speed several times a day.  As my recovery progressed, so did my speed and duration on the treadmill.

I don't know why it worked, but it definitely worked.

It's worth a try!

Denise

PS-I'm a MomWifeRetiredTeacher! yeah

Oh, and Welcome to the yeah yeah yeah Wrapped Club! yeah yeah yeah

Posted 1/31/2016 5:45 AM (GMT 0)
Hello fellow shoulder pain sufferers! I too had left shoulder pain after nissen fundoplication surgery, but the initial pain went away shortly after my surgery and was likely caused by the air in my system caused by the filling of my torso with air to perform the surgery. Years later, I began having severe shoulder pain that was excruciating! Lots of doctor visits and tests and drugs, but no relief. I read this blog and noticed that different people were experiencing the same problem (and i noticed people saying it was after having fatty or spicy foods). I remembered that pre-fundoplication surgery I had symptoms of an ulcer which was brought under control with Prilosec otc. I thought maybe the shoulder pain was referred pain from the return of my ulcer, so I got some Prilosec and started taking it each morning - by the third day my shoulder pain (and back pain) was gone - I was still sore for a few days, but the severe pain was gone! Of course each case is different, but for me, the prilosec completely cured me - evidently, my shoulder and back pain was referred pain from a stomach disorder. I know the shoulder pain was really, really bad, so I hope this remedy may help someone out there. Many of the drugs I was being prescribed before I tried the prilosec were hard on my stomach and actually made the pain get worse (and it happened more frequently). Check with your doctor and see of you can get some Prilosec or nexium to try and remedy your pain - it worked for me! May God bless any and all of you who are suffering with pain - I hope you get better soon!
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