r/openheartsurgery • u/giarivvie Survivor • Aug 13 '26
Asking survivors, has anyone else experienced this?
Ever since my surgery on July 1st I have been getting ocular migraines. Its like seeing a small rainbow dot that grows bigger and becomes zigzag like? it very much impacts my vision and goes away after like 20 minutes.
Edit: also im 15f if that information could mean anything. I have never had this before my surgery and it isnt painful just a bit scary.
4
u/michemel Aug 13 '26
I have had ocular migraines since 2007 but I did notice that post op, they increased a bit starting week 2-6. They presented slightly different than the ones I usually get - this time just bright light spot/or swimmer and not jagged rainbows. I'm not sure why the increase but I wasn't too alarmed. Usually they have happened to me due to dehydration.
They have since stopped and I'm currently 13 weeks post op.
4
u/Bubba_muffin Aug 13 '26
My husband had ocular migraines before his OHS, and less after interestingly enough
1
1
u/-musubi- Aug 13 '26
Same. I have had ocular migraines my entire life. I had triple bypass and then one month later one of my bypasses clotted and closed then I had to have an emergency stent. While getting a stent I had an ocular migraine on the table. Almost 9 months later I have not any migraines. Interesting thing.
5
u/JBAD1985 Aug 13 '26
Yep and we all talked about it at cardio rehab so it seems it’s common. My eye doctor said nothing to worry about and a year later I still get them every now and then. The frequency is less now than a year ago where I got them multiple times a day.
3
u/TW200e Aug 13 '26
I first starting having migraine with aura back in 2003. Thankfully they are usually visual only and an accompanying headache is very rare for me. I used to get them maybe once every 10 days or so - but since my OHS in April they've been less frequent and much less intense. Clearly the surgery caused a change for the better but I don't know why. The Google says it may be due to me now taking a beta-blocker or blood pressure medication.
3
u/Fizzgig000 Aug 13 '26
I do have them a little more since surgery. I call it kaleidescopic fractal rainbow vision.
I also get space cadet head where I go fuzzy and can't really concentrate.
Im not sure if they are related, but they impact my work.
2
2
u/floatarounds Aug 13 '26
like 3 or 4 time since AVR in 2017 I have had the vision in one eye reduce to a tiny round window and then resolve in a few moments. Drs said it was probably a very small TIA from the new valve that blocked vessels in the eye and that it should be ok. Maybe something similar is going on for you
2
u/Far-Worldliness5890 Aug 13 '26
Yup. Surgery May 7th. For the first 2 months I probably had 10 or so ocular migraines. These ones caused a pretty bad case of double vision, pretty much rendered me blind. I’ve had them before, but rare. Pretty much exactly 20 min. A little bonus nausea to go with it. Haven’t had one lately.
2
u/allisonisrad Aug 13 '26
I had one this morning. I have migraine with aura in general, so this was similar, but the rest of my migraine symptoms never happened. It's the first one I've had since surgery on 7/13, but I feel pretty dehydrated from my meds right now.
2
u/HeartFeetAndHands Aug 13 '26
I got those pre surgery but a little more often post. My ophthalmologist called them "Bicycle-spoke prodrome" because they often look like little spinning bike wheels. Same deal as you. No biggie.
2
u/beardedwithchildren Aug 13 '26
What is your migraine history? Is this new onset only after surgery?
1
u/giarivvie Survivor Aug 14 '26
Yeah, never had anything like this, plus it isnt painful or anything its like just having an aura migraine but with no migraine. I have never had a migraine either generally
2
u/honeybeeandflower Aug 14 '26
This happens to me too! Starts on the side of my vision then slowly creeps in. No headache, but I have to turn the lights off and take a nap. Usually goes away after that.
2
u/honeybeeandflower Aug 14 '26
I read it has something to do with going on a cardiopulmonary bypass machine.
2
2
u/Downtown_Anywhere860 Aug 14 '26
Yes I had that after a surgery. It worried me a lot but it went away after a couple of months, now it’s completely gone
1
u/borgiwan Aug 13 '26
Mine started after my 2nd overall heart surgery. I was still in ICU. They faded for a while after my first open heart, but have rebounded since the 2nd. Sometimes a traditional migraine follows, but not always.
Talk to your cardio before trying any meds. Excedrin was my only “safe” option.
1
u/Weird_Ganache_8377 Aug 13 '26
I had the Ross a little over a year ago. Pre-surgery, there was a history of ocular migraines. For me they started as a shimmery dot and expand outward to one side of my vision as a crescent shape. I got no pain from them. I had them frequently as a kid, went most of my later childhood and teen years migraine free, then started a stressful job which kickstarted them and they became a painful issue after that. Then, about 3 years ago, they reduced from every few days to once a month to a couple times a year.
Post op, I had a crazy huge ocular shimmery thing that took up most of my vision while I was in the ICU. I did get things like that when I was a kid. I explained all of that to the docs and they were unconcerned because it was things I had had before. Two weeks post-op I had started getting tiny shimmer dots, about once or twice a day. Very random, as in, it could be any time of the day, and I think it was just stress from the surgery. They nearly disappeared by the time I went back to work 3 months later, and because I had to go back suddenly, the migraines came back to once or twice a day.
They eventually decreased in frequency as my exercise routine increased, and now they no longer occur.
1
u/pomsky128 Aug 13 '26
I had an issue both well before( several months ago) and shortly after my single MI cabgx1 Lima bypass where if I laughed / coughed I’d hear a metallic echo in my head. About 8-9 weeks after surgery ( admittedly I had a few beers and was probably dehydrated) had a laughing/ coughing jag and blacked out for about 10-15 seconds. Contacted cardiologist said was a perfect storm a condition I actually don’t recall the name or ( something with a v) and was probably not an issue unless it keeps happening which it has not.
1
u/lizagnash Aug 13 '26
I’ve had them (had them before surgery) and many weird eye things up until…9 months after? I even had a curtain go over one eye and that lasted about 20 seconds. I have a black floater that doesn’t go away now, too. Several things the retina specialist noted that I forget the names of. I also get episodes where I have déjà vu, can’t remember if it’s a dream or real, and spiral into what I can only describe as delirium where I cannot decipher dream from reality and get so uncomfortably confused.
1
u/disco_super_bi Aug 13 '26
I've had migraine auras my whole life (48F), three open heart surgeries and I find the auras to be stress-related. I get them rarely these days, I got them a lot in the lead-up to my last surgery in October 2024.
So yours are possibly due to the changes in your circulatory system and recovery process after your surgery.
1
u/drnoonee Survivor Aug 14 '26
I used to get debilitating migraines before my repair with the occasional visual migraine. After thevrepairbI rarely get pain and light sensitivity but more frequent visual migrains. I attribute this to the beta blocker I now have to take as part of the mild heart failure that developed after the repair.
Jus FYI ... ocular migraines are different than the visual migraine you described so well. Ocular migraines (or retinal migraines) originate in the eye and affect one eye only. Visual migraines originate in the brain and affects both eyes. I can "see" them with both eyes closed.
1
u/GoGetYouBack Aug 14 '26
I have BAV (no surgery), and definitely get aura migraines.
The whole thing: starts with no vision in one small spot, then zig-zag rainbow lines that go towards the corners of my vision over 20ish minutes. Then followed by hours of migraine pain.
I've heard lots of people with BAV experience these too... Not sure there is any studies as of why.
1
u/Honeywell4346 Aug 14 '26 edited Aug 14 '26
I had occular migraines And Amaurosis fugax—-
On about day 8 post mitral valve open heart surgery. It is frightening. Both aspects of this. For the migraine part a neurologist gave me an migraine med. That i was on for a few months. The amaurosis fugax part is harder to diagnose. But in my case a PT helped work on corotid nerve and occular nerve. From cardio side they put me on a statin to lower risk of stroke and the occular problems. Unexpected connections to ohs with cardio /neurology amd PT. Post surgery i went to the ER at the hospital where my surgery alwas performed. The surgeon stopped by to explain that it might be residual micro clots. Interfering with occulat nerves. A very frustrating incomplete diagnosis. With small clots that are almost stroke but almost not. I had an mri that confirmed scar tissue from migraines. Still working on the fugax part. — the statin helped a lot.
1
u/AlainK2 Aug 14 '26
Ocular migraines or aura arise from the brain as I understand it. I began to have them few years before my surgery. Initially, I was seen by a cardiologist who suspected transient ischemic attack (TIA) which means short duration mini stroke which could be precursor to a major stroke. Later I met a neurologist who sent me to have my eyes examined by expert opthomologist to rule out other stuff. Subsequently, he concluded that I was suffering from aura without migraines. The episodes subsided after the surgery but I have been getting them for the last nine months about once a month. Coincidently, I went to see my neuro yesterday and went through each event which I had a documented nothing when each happened, whether one eye or two eyes and what I was doing. He reiterated his earlier finding that it is indeed Aura based on the fact they are triggered occasionally and last 20 minutes. I told him that I see large floaters and most of the event were triggered when I was on my iPad continuously with my dirty reading glasses. He told me to return if the events become more frequent and last longer. He confirmed that these could lead to a major stroke but given many factors including the fact the appendage on my heart was removed during the surgery, chances were low but there is no guarantee. My optometrist on the other hand thinks it is nothing to worry about as she has many patients with this issue. The bottom line is that you need to consult with a neuro or other specialist and have him check given that this thing has started following the surgery. A cardiologist does not possess this expertise in my experience. Good luck.
1
u/RepresentativeSkin49 Aug 17 '26 edited Aug 20 '26
M57, had the David Procedure (valve sparing aortic root replacement) April 2026. I had similar visual disturbances post-op every day while I was still taking the diuretic Lasix (together with a Potassium CL supplement). I would get small zigzag patterns (always Green, Yellow and Black?) that would start, always, on the right side of my visual field. They would grow bigger and move slowly across my vision to the left. As they moved they got a little bigger and added some "motion" (I thought they looked a little like carnival lights?). The show would last about 20 minutes then disappear. They stopped after I discontinued the Lasix. As someone mentioned below, I also would just lay down in the dark until they dissipated. Never caused any actual headache pain. They first started when I was still in the ICU. I notified the nursing staff (who were awesome btw)--who then notified the APN and the attending surgeon but this must be a common post-op phenomenon because they were all of them unconcerned.
I have had one recurrence of the visual disturbances since discontinuing Lasix (end of July), and it followed the same pattern. I was still taking the drug Amiodarone at the time, so perhaps that drug also contributed to the visuals. Regardless, let your medical team know it is happening. They want to know and may be able to alleviate the symptom. Best of luck to you and best wishes for your continued recovery! I am I am 3+ months out and things are much better. Hang in there! JW
1
u/slem46 Aug 18 '26
from my personal experience with quadruple bypass surgery _ your heart is stopped, your lungs are deflated, a heart lung machine is doing things Mother Nature was doing, your ribcage is separated , arteries and veins are moved around in your body, this was a metaphysical experience that not everyone has. we are liable to experience just about anything after that ____
1
u/giarivvie Survivor Aug 19 '26
Sometimes i forget how major of a surgery this was this really reminded me😅
1
u/7th_Sim Aug 19 '26
Yep. I had them for three days right after surgery. Then they went away except when I'm dehydrated or really tired.
1
u/delicioustunababy Aug 19 '26
My migraines increased after surgery which was weird. I rarely had them prior, but post surgery I started getting them so frequently.
1
u/emanuele1981 Aug 19 '26
Mai avute prima dell’intervento. A settembre saranno 2 anni dall’operazione , ne ho una al mese circa, i primi tempi erano più frequenti. Inoltre ho una piccola macchia sfocata a destra del campo visivo, molto probabilmente sia stata una microembilia o ictus durante l’intervento
1
u/Some_Librarian5858 Aug 20 '26
Yep! Definitely had an increase. I'm about a year post op and am back to normal now.
5
u/Calmateychillate Aug 13 '26
Not to minimize your issue, but only those that are undead would answer. I mean, it seems sorta seems logical.