I had triple by pass about five years ago is it possible?

Question

Does the procedure cause memory problems. I was told that during these procedures the patient often has a stroke and the short term memory is affected. Can anyone tell me if they know anyone who exprienced the same symptoms?

Answer 1

If your symptoms started when you had your bypass surgery, then I would say it is possible that you had some small strokes during or immediatly following the procedure.

If your symptoms are just showing up now, there are some other things to think about.....

Your heart rhythm....if you're in atrial fibrillation, have been in atrial fibrillation, are going back and forth between your normal rhythm and atrial fibrillation, you could be throwing clots from your heart to your brain. An EKG could diagnose this condition. It would be treated with blood thinners and antiarrhythmics.

You carotid arteries....people who need bypass surgery have circulatory vessel disease, often. It is possible that your carotids have built up plaque, and the narrowed arteries are not able to carry blood to portions of your brain. A simple carotid ultrasound can diagnose this. There is surgery that can remove some of the plaque and open the vessels.

Vessel disease....TIAs or Strokes can be caused by vessel disease that has affected the vasculature of the brain. It is possible you might be having these events due to problems with the vessels in your brain.

Medicines....some medicines can cause this.

Age....even elderly people have bypass surgery from time-to-time. Since you didn't state your age, I can't say if this is the case for you, but many older people have problems with their short term memory loss.

Depression....short term memory loss can be affected by depression. After such a big surgery,. and with all of the life changes that take place afterward, it would not be a surprise to find someone depressed.

There's bunches of things that could be causing the problem. I would recommend that you see your doctor to discuss his feelings on your situation and rule out any serious problems.

hope this helps.

Answer 2

My mother had quadruple bypass surgery two years ago and her memory was definately affected. My neighbor had heart surgery to reduce its size 3 1/2 years ago and she has severe memory proplems. I think it's the medication that does it.