Hearing Loss - Part 4: Surgery!

I kept Thursday, June 30th blocked on my calendar even though surgery wasn't until 2 PM.

I showed up at noon for check-in.  They asked to confirm that I was getting surgery for the right ear (side). I said no, it was for the left. They asked "Are you sure?" Yes, I have SSD and I know which side is bad.

Even though they "fixed" it in the computer, it popped up two more times including even how they initially set up the operating room. They ended up needing to do more paperwork and the result is that it probably added an hour or two to my time in the hospital. Even the wrong processor was ordered but I have plenty of time to get the correct one.

Surgery went well but it could have been tragic. Not as bad as the cases like the wrong kidney removed or limb amputated but still very bad. Just a reminder to make it very, very clear which side to be operated on.  Just a reminder that the old advice about marking "not on this side" is still valid before going into surgery.
Lesson Learned:  Triple check which side is ordered

The surgery went well.  I had asked the surgeon if he used the minimally invasive surgery procedure and he said that yes, he used a punch biopsy.  While true that he used a minimally invasive surgical procedure, I had the impression he was using the full "Minimally Invasive Ponto Surgery" procedure developed by Oticon.  My hearing being bad, I couldn't tell the difference between the capitalized "Minimally Invasive" and the lower case "minimally invasive."

He has a lot of experience and confidence with Oticon abutments and says that he has never had a rejected abutment though.  I would really have liked the potential of doing it under local anesthesia instead of general anesthesia. It would have been a lot less expensive for the insurance company and quicker. Essentially, he does a minimally invasive procedure but not
Lesson Learned:  Ask details about the surgical procedure to be done.

Even with nursing shift changes and the complications of having the wrong side listed to operated on, I was on my way home five and a half hours after first arriving.  The anesthesiologist seemed to do very well.  The only pain that felt was the prick of local anesthesia and a sore throat when eating for the following 24 hours.

All in all, it it continues to feel painfree.  I never needed to take a pain reliever after surgery.  Okay, I took a Tylenol before dinner on Saturday night because we were going out for a fancy dinner and I didn't want to have any linger effects from the breathing tube affecting a nice steak dinner.  The Tylenol was probably unnecessary but I just wanted to be safe.

There was a little bit of minor bleeding on Friday and Saturday.  On Saturday night, the protective cap fell off my ear.  Now the screw head was visible.  It was hard to see under my hair.  I was surprised that he didn't cut more hair back for surgery.

I have a followup with the surgeon on Wednesday to inspect the site.  My wife is applying Neosporin to the site twice a day to keep risk of infection down.

Now I'm eagerly anticipating August when the titanium screw (abutment) will have fused with bone securely.  That is when I get to snap on the processor and start hearing better on my left side.