Flight travel after aneurysm embolization

General
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Hello everyone,

I follow and read a lot here in avmsurvivors.org and thank you for sharing so much info and experience. My father 75 years old is an AVM survivor for several years ( may be by birth) the AVM has destroyed more than 80% of his left limb and leg. Recently due to electrolyte imbalance my father had a pseudo aneurysm rupture and needed a procedure (endoscopy) embolization (using Onyx)…

How long does my father need to wait before he can travel by air or take a flight to travel for several hours ? At present he is in India and I am planning to bring my father to United States for further aneurysm management and treatment. The flights will take between 22 to 27 hours of continuous journey time to reach US.

Appreciate if you share some insights and knowledge here. Is there a way for me to understand or test if my father is ready to take a flight.

thanks

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Hello: I’m so sorry your father is having to deal with all of this in his life. You and your Dad need to speak with his doctor about air travel - only his doctor would have the best information about his safety during long a travel. Best of luck and your Dad is lucky to have a caring daughter. Vickie

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@tshailesh007 Hello I am so sorry about your father but so glad you are bringing him to the states to get treatment. I agree with @Vikki to talk to his dr to get their advice. I can tell you I did fly to Hawaii which is only a 5 hour flight from San Francisco about 6 months after my embolism - I did have some minor pain during the flight both ways and additional head aches the day after each flight. I do wear compression socks when I fly. And I do now bring Nunn electrolytes with me when I travel. Once I did not wear my compression socks on a flight to Las Vegas cause I thought it was such a short flight and my legs got very swollen and it was painful.They have sorts now on Amazon. Its important to stay hydrated and I always buy a Coke to bring with me on the plane it seems to help me as I get a bit nausea when the plane is going to land. I would ask the dr for some anti nausea meds such as zofran or there is a patch you can put behind your ear but you cant touch it. It lasts for days. The only thing is these can make you a bit sleepy. As I am sure you know for anyone its important to get up and walk around too on a long flight. Dont drink the water on the plane- ask for club soda- trust me my old room mate is a flight attendant and my dad was a plumber at the SFO airport, Buy bottled water once you get through security. Best of luck to you and your dad on your travel and please let us know how is he doing Hugs Angela

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Thank you @Angela4 Angela,
This is really very good info and yes I see my father gets his feet swollen often at home even though he is not flying … trying compression socks to see if it helps. I have an up coming appointment on Monday to evaluate his readiness to fly with me.

I will certainly keep you all posted and I wish he is able to travel with me without any problems so that I can take better care of him while I also take care of my work in the states.

thank again
Sailesh

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Thank you @Vikki,

I have an up coming appointment on Monday and I will bring up this point with his doctor to evaluate him and give permit him to fly with me.

BTW: I am his son … may be daughter could have done much better than I am … lol never mind I appreciate you took time to reply my query…

thanks
Sailesh.

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Are you going to New York?

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Hello @tshailesh007 I would definitely ask the dr about your dads swelling even when isn’t flying. My husband has high blood pressure and one thing they are always checking on him is swelling on his ankles and feet. He doesn’t have it so I don’t know they will do for it. You might get him some lightweight compression socks for wearing around the house

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Well, you’re an amazing Son!!’ How is your Dad? I raised two Sons - I’m a boys mom! Bless you

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Hi Sailesh,

I would say for you to leave the testing to the experts. Let them make the decisions when they think it is safe for him to fly.

You are a good son looking out for your father like you are. I will pray for both him and you that you both remain safe in the time ahead.

Please keep us updated.

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@Benjie thanks for your reply and all the kind words …

As suggested here by you as well as others , I consulted my father’s doctors and they suggested to give him six months so recover from all the stress trauma and other problems if any… 6 months should be sufficient time for him to recover completely and be energetic again to take any travel stress …

I am also of the opinion that by the time we complete 6 months we will learn more how to cope up with COVID19 as well, along with all travel transits et al …

Thank you for all humble suggestions and sharing your experiences with me.

I will keep you all posted with further updates till I return to SanFrancisco in coming days

Thanks

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Hi Sailesh, You’re asking the right questions. My seizures from AVM craniotomies scar tissue are more common after flying. It throws my rhythm off badly even if I don’t have a seizure.
In your dad’s case it seems like flying is the lesser of two evils.
Greg