patrick1945
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Posts:19
My wife has had several thoracenteses . Each time, no matter the amount of fluid or the slowness of the draining procedure, she has had terrible pain from the beginning.
About 1 1/2 months ago, she had a large amount of fluid drain under a general. A Pleurex was also installed. it's clear that fluid has built up and we're going to try the catheter for the first time. So, a few questions:
1. why pain at the beginning of the procedure?
2. I read on Grace that sometimes moving the clamp further up the tube, i.e., near the incision can help. Is that correct?
3. Does body position matter with respect to pain?
4. Any other "tips' for reducing pain would be great.
Thanks very much.
Pat
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Reply # - January 18, 2016, 02:01 PM
This situation is not unusual
This situation is not unusual, it is often due to 'trapped lung'. Often the cancer encases the edges of the lung, sticking it in place, which causes a trapped lung. In this setting, the lung cannot fully reexpand since it is stuck to the chestwall. You might get some fluid out, but it never fully expands.
So when a sucking force is applied to the pleural space (eg thoracentesis), it pulls on the surface of the trapped lung, causing pain. It is kind like giving the lung a 'hickey'.
It is also possible the needle is poking into pleural tumor, causing more pain than expected.
Removing the fluid does not treat the cancer itself; it is intended to help with symptoms. So if it is causing more symptoms, perhaps it is not worthwhile. If removing fluid is truly necessary, then taking an opoid pain medication first seems smart.