171 Ashley Ave.
Charleston, SC 29425
843-792-1414
800-424-MUSC
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PCICU Family Information: Operative Period
In the Waiting Room
The time has come and waiting is going to be the hardest part of the entire experience. Please sign in and wait in the
fourth floor PCICU waiting room in the main hospital. During the operation, someone will give you periodic updates on the
progress of your child's surgery. If you leave the waiting room, please notify the Guest Relations Representative, in case
we need to contact you.
You may obtain a family pager during the operative period from guest relations. You must sign a contract and provide
either a debit card, credit card or photo ID card. After your first post-op visit, the pager is returned and the contract will be
be voided. The pager's range is within the hospital and Ronald McDonald House grounds.
Our waiting room is open from 6:30 a.m. until 9 p.m. There is a resource center for your use open
until 4 pm. This center loans books on medical subjects and for personal reading. There is also computer access
available.
A brief walk and breath of fresh air can help to relieve some tension. Be sure to eat even if it is only small
meal. You cannot help your child if you end up sick because you are not caring for yourself!
We strongly encourage families to get a good night's sleep rather than visiting during night time hours.
Please do not leave your valuables unattended. MUSC is not responsible for stolen items.
In the Operating Room
It takes about 1-2 hours to get your child ready for the operation. The anesthesiologist will give your child medicines to
make them sleepy.
Once your child is asleep, there are many monitors and tubes attached. These will be explained later.
Once all the tubes are in place, the operation will begin. The heart-lung machine (cardio-pulmonary bypass machine) is
used during most open-heart surgeries. This machine pumps blood for the heart and adds oxygen for the lungs during surgery.
It also lowers the body temperature, which decreases the body's need for oxygen and energy. Near the end of the operation,
they warm the blood and the flow returns to the heart and lungs.
The doctor places the last few tubes as he finishes working on the heart. Wire or thick suture material closes the breastbone (sternum). The wires will stay in the chest
forever and are seen on x-ray. These will not make metal detectors go off or keep your child from having special x-rays
like magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Healing of the breastbone is usually complete within six (6) weeks.
Special stitches close the incision on the chest. These stitches dissolve later. Steri-stip bandages will hold the outside of the incision in place. These will gradually fall off in about 10-14 days. Healing of the skin is complete by this time.
After the incision is closed, the child is transferred to the PCICU.
Occasionally, the chest may be "left open" because of swelling. This means the surgeon did not use wires to close the
breastbone and did not suture the skin together. A sterile plastic covering is sewn in place to protect the heart. When
there is little swelling left, the plastic cover is removed and the chest closed. This is done by the surgeon in the PCICU.
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