PAIN IN RIGHT SIDE - 1 week post-op hysterectomy

I am 1 week post op (da vinci lap. total hysterectomy). I've had all the typical post-op pain, gas, etc. The gas has mostly dissipated and I'm having normal bowel movements, but the one constant has been this pain in my right side. It's like a pinched feeling down near my right pelvis area and a stabbing feeling up under my bottom right rib when I take a breath. It gets worse when I eat something (and I haven't been eating much to make my stomach over-expand). The pain is not IN my stomach. I'm picturing the stomach expanding and pressing on something to irritate whatever it is in there. And I'm not in excruciating pain, but it's painful enough and prevents me from being able to take deep breaths so I feel like I can't catch my breath, and I can't lie on my back or right side comfortably so it's been keeping me awake. The 800mg Ibuprofen gives a little bit of relief.

I called my OB/surgeon and he was in surgery today and out all next week. His assistant told me it sounded like a GI problem and not related to the surgery and to go to the ER. I told her I didn't have this problem before the surgery! Then I called my regular doctor and she and all the doctors in the practice are out until next Thursday. Unbelievable. So I guess if it doesn't get better by Monday, I'll end up having to go to an ER anyway. I'm frustrated! I just need to know if this is a typical pain or if it's something I should have checked out.

Lastly, my 23 year old daughter has endo, adhesions, etc. and has had a couple surgeries for that. The last one she said she had similar pain and it turned out that the plural lining of the lung had gotten irritated and inflamed from the surgery (how it would do that being so much higher than the female organs I have no idea). They gave her a shot of Toradol(?) and she said the pain went away almost immediately and didn't come back.

Sorry for the long message, but has anyone had anything similar to this? I really don't want to go the ER again (I've been 3 times this year already for other things).

I'm over concerned about your condition because I'm experiencing something similar. I too was told by my doctor's nurse that it could be a GI problem. It goes away if take Tums but only briefly.

Angela

	Quote:
Originally Posted by dhund2 I am 1 week post op (da vinci lap. total hysterectomy). I've had all the typical post-op pain, gas, etc. The gas has mostly dissipated and I'm having normal bowel movements, but the one constant has been this pain in my right side. It's like a pinched feeling down near my right pelvis area and a stabbing feeling up under my bottom right rib when I take a breath. It gets worse when I eat something (and I haven't been eating much to make my stomach over-expand). The pain is not IN my stomach. I'm picturing the stomach expanding and pressing on something to irritate whatever it is in there. And I'm not in excruciating pain, but it's painful enough and prevents me from being able to take deep breaths so I feel like I can't catch my breath, and I can't lie on my back or right side comfortably so it's been keeping me awake. The 800mg Ibuprofen gives a little bit of relief. I called my OB/surgeon and he was in surgery today and out all next week. His assistant told me it sounded like a GI problem and not related to the surgery and to go to the ER. I told her I didn't have this problem before the surgery! Then I called my regular doctor and she and all the doctors in the practice are out until next Thursday. Unbelievable. So I guess if it doesn't get better by Monday, I'll end up having to go to an ER anyway. I'm frustrated! I just need to know if this is a typical pain or if it's something I should have checked out. Lastly, my 23 year old daughter has endo, adhesions, etc. and has had a couple surgeries for that. The last one she said she had similar pain and it turned out that the plural lining of the lung had gotten irritated and inflamed from the surgery (how it would do that being so much higher than the female organs I have no idea). They gave her a shot of Toradol(?) and she said the pain went away almost immediately and didn't come back. Sorry for the long message, but has anyone had anything similar to this? I really don't want to go the ER again (I've been 3 times this year already for other things).

My right side hurt/hurts too. I am five weeks post op. I feel like they broke a rib during surgery. I spend a lot of evenings on the heating pad, it seems to be the only relief I can get. I am still taking pain pills.

	Quote:
Originally Posted by dhund2 I am 1 week post op (da vinci lap. total hysterectomy). I've had all the typical post-op pain, gas, etc. The gas has mostly dissipated and I'm having normal bowel movements, but the one constant has been this pain in my right side. It's like a pinched feeling down near my right pelvis area and a stabbing feeling up under my bottom right rib when I take a breath. It gets worse when I eat something (and I haven't been eating much to make my stomach over-expand). The pain is not IN my stomach. I'm picturing the stomach expanding and pressing on something to irritate whatever it is in there. And I'm not in excruciating pain, but it's painful enough and prevents me from being able to take deep breaths so I feel like I can't catch my breath, and I can't lie on my back or right side comfortably so it's been keeping me awake. The 800mg Ibuprofen gives a little bit of relief. I called my OB/surgeon and he was in surgery today and out all next week. His assistant told me it sounded like a GI problem and not related to the surgery and to go to the ER. I told her I didn't have this problem before the surgery! Then I called my regular doctor and she and all the doctors in the practice are out until next Thursday. Unbelievable. So I guess if it doesn't get better by Monday, I'll end up having to go to an ER anyway. I'm frustrated! I just need to know if this is a typical pain or if it's something I should have checked out. Lastly, my 23 year old daughter has endo, adhesions, etc. and has had a couple surgeries for that. The last one she said she had similar pain and it turned out that the plural lining of the lung had gotten irritated and inflamed from the surgery (how it would do that being so much higher than the female organs I have no idea). They gave her a shot of Toradol(?) and she said the pain went away almost immediately and didn't come back. Sorry for the long message, but has anyone had anything similar to this? I really don't want to go the ER again (I've been 3 times this year already for other things).

This is just s guess. But it sounds lke what my mom experienced with her lap surgery. It was from left over gas they use to pump up the abdoman. I remember her saying it was so bad. She even thought she was having a heart attack! Anyway, just an idea. Best wishes you feel better soon. From a Tx hyst sis

Have you contacted your doctor about it? If so, what did he say? Mine doesn't feel like a rib issue. It feels like a really bad "stitch" like when you run to far and get out of breath (except worse). Did you have the Da Vinci robotic surgery? I didn't question my surgeon's use of the da vinci robot - I just thought that's how they did things these days - didn't know there was another option, but I sure wish I had known. And after reading all the comments, I hope I don't end up in the same boat: (couldn't post website here, but if you do a google search for da vinci surgery side effects, you'll see a site with a lot of women's complaints about pain in side that never gets better and wishing they had never had the surgery.)

Thanks, but my gas has gone away, and I could tell it was gas. It would come and go and shift until it finally dissipated. But this particular pain in my right side has been constant and unmoving and is slightly relieved by 800mg Ibuprofen. Ibuprofen does not relief gas, which leads me to believe that this right-side pain is due to something else. I just now found a site that has a lot of horror stories about the Da Vinci robotic surgery. Almost every post on that site complained of right sided or some kind of abdominal pain that doesn't go away and has disabled some. So now I'm really praying that this will not become a long term problem.