Expert: Dr Ian Jackson - please note UK based - 1/12/2008

Question
My husband, 58years old, has just had a radical prostatectomy. He has lost sensation in both hands and this has drifted up to the elbows. He is getting sensation back in his right hand but the left is slow to recover. He is depressed and speech is slow. The operation was on 7/01/08. Any suggestions?

Answer
Hi there Bernice
I am afraid it is difficult to be confident about what this is. However this was a major operation in someone who is a reasonable age and we do know that operations put a severe stress on a patients body. Indeed during the recovery phase there are huge demands on the patients body that the patients heart and lungs have to be able to respond to. Any deficiency in these can lead to a more protracted and difficult recovery. We are also increasingly gaining evidence that anaesthesia can have marked effects on patients brain function and that some people are more suscepatable to these problems. Even young people can notice difference in their mental abilities (crosswords and simple arithmetic). Given that his speech is slow we would also have to ask if he had experienced a minor stroke or had an episode of low blood pressure during his operation that might have this.
So lots of possibilities that could explain this situation. I suggest you talk with the doctors involved in his care about your concerns.
I hope he continues to recover well.
Kind rgeards
Dr Ian Jackson