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right frontal lobe surgery-may have it very soon!

Wed, 04/26/2006 - 22:52
Topic: Surgery and Devices
This ? has been asked before, but I'll try again. not much response to the last person who asked. i guess not many people have frontal lobe surgery. my 25yo daughter may be a good candidate for it. i want to know more about the effects of this surgery on others. she had a brain tumor as a baby and had radiation treatment and surgery at that time. she is cognitively impaired due to above, as well as the epilepsy and high dose meds. we're so worried. it's such a gamble-will her functioning improve or get worse? there will not be a definitive answer to this dilemma, i know. other people's experiences would be helpful. thanks

Comments

right FLE surgery what to expect

Submitted by Wendy07 on Fri, 2007-12-07 - 15:52
In regards to Luz Elisaon, I just had surgery a little over a month ago. I didn't know anyone who had it, or anyone who who had seizures. It was difficult for people to imagine why I would risk so much to get rid of them, but finally after explaining what it's like to not be able to drive,etc. they seemed more understanding. You asked if the pain was unbearable. I was told my the surgeon's nurse that it varies greatly from person to person. That was my biggest worry about surgery (besides not being the same person I was prior to surgery) and they gave me enough pain medication to help. It was not bad AT ALL! Sometimes my head would throb and it would throb all the way around my head, not just at the incisions. I used ice packs a lot and that helped too. I had a drain in place after the first surgery but it didn't work very well so they just took it out and changed my head wrap 2-3 times/day because my head was oozing a lot. I hope things go as well for you as they did for me. It was probably the least painful surgery I've ever had and easy to recover from. I am tired, very tired but that is it. I was only on pain meds for 1 week after I got home and only took them once/day. I'm sure it's hard, but try not to let people get you down and affect YOUR way of thinking. Hopefully you can find support here. Let me know if you have any further questions or just want to chat to someone who understands. Best Regards, Wendy

Re: right FLE surgery what to expect

Submitted by Dee_6 on Mon, 2008-06-30 - 11:58
I'm also looking into RTL surgery......and my questions regard memory...how much seems different--ability to remember names/locations. I was told before I'd probably have problems. However I never asked much info--wanted to wait until all tests were done....here's hoping for a better answer. Seriously, did you have tests prior and did you get different results after?---that is if you had wada tests before/after. thankx for any info you can give to help make a final decision

Re: right FLE surgery what to expect

Submitted by reba on Tue, 2008-07-01 - 11:40

Hi

I had RTL surgery done in August '07, and thus far have been seizure free! My WADA test showed that all of my motor skills, speech and memory was controlled from the left side, and not the right. Which, from my understanding, it is the left side of the brain that controls most of that.  So i dont think you will have much trouble with that. The only complication that i had after surgery, is that i lost some of my perifveral vision. Which doesnt hinder me from doing anything, including driving. Pain afterwards, is to be expected, as far as headaches and swelling. But with the pain meds, and ice packs, I didnt have too much of a problem. I was in ICU a total of 3 days before i was moved to a regular room for 2 days. I was only in the hospital for 5 days before coming home. Recovery time varies for each individual. It took me about a week to get back into the swing of things. I dont regret my decision to have surgery. Although i lost some of the periferval vision, it was only a small price to pay to finally be seizure free and to once again be able to do things that once i was afraid to do. It has truely given me a better quality of life. I hope this helps. Good luck to you and God Bless, Becky

Hi

I had RTL surgery done in August '07, and thus far have been seizure free! My WADA test showed that all of my motor skills, speech and memory was controlled from the left side, and not the right. Which, from my understanding, it is the left side of the brain that controls most of that.  So i dont think you will have much trouble with that. The only complication that i had after surgery, is that i lost some of my perifveral vision. Which doesnt hinder me from doing anything, including driving. Pain afterwards, is to be expected, as far as headaches and swelling. But with the pain meds, and ice packs, I didnt have too much of a problem. I was in ICU a total of 3 days before i was moved to a regular room for 2 days. I was only in the hospital for 5 days before coming home. Recovery time varies for each individual. It took me about a week to get back into the swing of things. I dont regret my decision to have surgery. Although i lost some of the periferval vision, it was only a small price to pay to finally be seizure free and to once again be able to do things that once i was afraid to do. It has truely given me a better quality of life. I hope this helps. Good luck to you and God Bless, Becky

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