Re: Long time no write.....help!

[Guest guest]

Cassie, I have no personal experience with liver biopsy. However http://www.hepatitiscaware.org/biopsy.html states a 1/30 chance of significant pain after biopsy, 1/1000 to 3000 risk of serious bleeding. http://www.uct.ac.za/depts/liver/liver%20notes/notes%20biopsy%20indications.htm states (there emphasis, not mine):

During the course of a percutaneous biopsy, the needle penetrates four pain-sensitive tissues and one pain-insensitive tissue. The first pain-sensitive tissue is the skin, which is easily anaesthetised. Thereafter the bulk of the needle track traverses the subcutaneous fat which is pain-insensitive, yet this is where the bulk of the local anaesthetic is often injected! The principle pain-sensitive tissues are the intercostal muscles, parietal and visceral pleura and the hepatic capsule, all of which lie deep and indeed, far deeper than the reach of any hypodermic injection needle.

From http://www.hepatitis-central.com/hcv/whatis/biopsy.html

Approximately half of individuals have no pain afterwards, while another half will experience brief localized pain that may spread to the right shoulder.

From http://www.niddk.nih.gov/health/digest/pubs/liverbiopsy/liverbiopsy.htm

You will need to arrange to have someone take you home from the hospital since you will not be allowed to drive after having the sedative. You must go directly home and remain in bed (except to use the bathroom) for 8 to 12 hours, depending on your physician's instructions. Also, be sure not to exert yourself too much for the next week so that the incision and liver can heal. You can expect a little soreness at the incision site, and you might have some pain in your right shoulder. This pain is caused by irritation of the diaphragm muscle (the pain usually radiates to the shoulder) and should disappear within a few hours or days. Your physician may recommend that you take Tylenol for pain, but you must not take aspirin or ibuprofen for the first week after surgery. These medicines decrease blood clotting, which is crucial for healing.

Sorry - not much help.

Arne51 - UC 1977 - PSC 2000Alive and (mostly) well in Minnesota

-----Original Message-----From: Cassie Rowland

HELP!I had a liver biopsy done friday and I am still extremely sore. I dont remember ever being in this much pain in my previous biopsy. I cant bend and can only sleep on my back bc either side hurts when I lay on it. It hurts to take deep breaths and im miserable. Any ideas?Thanks

Cassie

[Guest guest]

Cassie, Was this a needle biopsy? If so I have info that will not sound good but needs to be monitored. Please reply. Tim L

[Guest guest]

Cassie, I wrote asking if it was a needle biopsy,but, I decided I should assume so and relate my experience. I've had 3 of them, 2 with no pain afterward and then the last one. My GI was concerned because I had a lot of pain after the procedure,which there is not supposed to be any of. Approx 10 days later I was in the hospital with an exploded gallbadder and had gangrene everywhere. They could not operate for 5 days while they flooded me with antibiotics. This is not to scare you, but rather to insure that if the pain continues you will stay on top of it and have it checked out and persistant hard pain calls for a trip to ER if you can't get to your doc. Your's is most probably something els, but you needed to be aware. Tim L

[Guest guest]

Cassie,

It doesn't sound normal to have such severe pain for several

days. There is the possibility that your diaphram was nicked or

punctured during the biopsy. If that happened you should be

checked for internal bleeding and to make sure your lungs are

OK. I'm not sure what treatment you would be given, other than

more rest and monitoring until you heal. If you pain persists

tomorrow definitely give the doctor a call about your symptoms.

Tim R

--- Cassie Rowland wrote:

> I had a liver biopsy done friday and I am still extremely

> sore. I dont remember ever being in this much pain in my

> previous biopsy. I cant bend and can only sleep on my back bc

> either side hurts when I lay on it. It hurts to take deep

> breaths and im miserable. Any ideas?

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

Cassie, my son Josh was in trememdous pain after the biopsy, and for awhile

afterwards. Someone said that sometimes when they go in there they can hit a

nerve and that can create pain. I don't know if that is true or not but in

talking to others I don't think his case was the norm. He is normally really

stoic about all his procedures but not so the biopsy. Josh, if you are

lurking, you might want to add your observations for her or if you found

anything that helped ease the pain. Lou, mom of Josh, possible strange

form of PSC with overlapping symptoms of PBC

_________________________________________________________________

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[Guest guest]

Cassie, my last biopsy was extremely painful, much more so than the first.

They gave me pethadine in hospital, then I was on Panadeine forte the first

day home, then Panadeine only, then by the fourth day was only on Panadol

(tylenol equivalent). I hope you are improving by now, if not, go back to

check with the dr!

Good luck,

Aussie Penny

[Guest guest]

Hi Cassie,

I've had 2 liver biopsies and had extreme pain afterwards for

several days. The only way to cope with it was find as comfortable

position as possible and stay still. This helped, as did reading a

good book at the time to take my mind off it.

I still get pain, sometimes so bad that it hurts to breathe. I

discussed this with my hep dr last Thurs. He thinks that as my pain

can be aggravated by movement, ie ironing, vacuuming, cleaning the

bath, etc, that they may have caught a nerve with the needle. I'm

afraid that in my case it's " take the pain killers and try not to do

anything that is going to aggravate it " . Of course, with living on

my own, I still have to do the above things. I just do them as I

can and then relax with a good book (good thing I like to read!!).

Any volunteers to do the ironing!!???? I hate it!!!!!

Hope you're feeling better soon.

Helen (UK)

> HELP!

>

> I had a liver biopsy done friday and I am still extremely sore. I

dont remember ever being in this much pain in my previous biopsy. I

cant bend and can only sleep on my back bc either side hurts when I

lay on it. It hurts to take deep breaths and im miserable. Any ideas?

>

> Thanks

> Cassie

[Guest guest]

thus spake helen: " Any volunteers to do the ironing!!???? I hate it!!!!! "

helen, are you kidding?!?!?!?!? i hate ironing too... HOWEVER i'll GLADLY

do yours; in fact, as a domestic goddess extraordinaire with new-found

energy from restored lung function, while you await your " caught nerve " to

settle down, i'll vacuum your floors, clean your bath and cook, too, if it

means i can bunk with you awhile (*maureen's thinking, hmmmmm, all i need

now is a round-trip ticket to the UK...*)

i have relatives i've never met, in reading and in lincolnshire. wherefore

art thou?

ever the happy wanderer,

(singing " valderee, valderah, valderee, valderAHahahahahahaha, my knapsack

on my back... " )

maureen

[Guest guest]

I had a liver biopsy done friday and I am still extremely sore. I don't remember ever being in this much pain in my previous biopsy. I cant bend and can only sleep on my back bc either side hurts when I lay on it. It hurts to take deep breaths and im miserable. Any ideas?

>

Hi Cassie,

I hope by now you are feeling much. I was told I might get 'mild pain' for a few hours afterwards and to take paracetamol if necessary. After the biopsy I had to be kept in hospital for several days as it was agony. The eventually said that the backlogging of the blood and bile going through the ducts/vessels must have caused blood and bile to leak into my abdomen and anyone who has that knows all about it. :!(

Hope you're soon well again, love

Barbara (UK)

[Guest guest]

i have relatives i've never met, in reading and in lincolnshire. wherefore

art thou?

hi Maureen,

I live in south Oxfordshire about 25 miles west of Reading. Its a lovely area if you get the time to visit.

Bon voyage

Barbara (UK)