Jodi's Surgery Update

Surgery went very well. I only received local anesthetic and some versed, so I was able to watch the whole procedure. I was in a radiological suite with an x-ray camera over my abdomen and 6 monitors from which the doctor worked. It was fascinating to watch them work.

The procedure I had done was an embolization of the ovarian vein. Because of the stress that 3 pregnancies has had on my body, I developed pelvic congestion syndrome where the ovarian veins become incompetent causing blood to pool on the pelvic floor. It wasn't until today that I saw the "before" images. The vein appeared as a nice straight pencil-thin line then gradually swelled to maybe 20 times the normal size, then eventually turned into literally a round pool of collected blood. The doctor said he rarely sees this condition quite as bad as I've had it--said my images should be in a textbook!

So he inserted a catheter into the vein and placed 13 spring-like, metal coils over a 7 inch section of vein. The coils then released a clotting agent as they sprung open inside the vein, giving me 100% blockage in the incompetent vein now. This is not a picture of me, but one I found online that looked somewhat similar to my "after" images. I have a few more coils that what this picture shows.


I was surprised at how easily I tolerated the procedure, although the versed did have its side effects for the rest of the day. Now I'm just not supposed to lift anything for a couple days--harder said than done with an active 2 year old and a 50 lb daughter in a wheelchair! Now I just have to wait til December 8th for my phlebectomy which will give me the most relief from my symptoms.