My 82 yr dad had hip replacement surgery three weeks ago. After the surgery my dad has NOT being himself.... he was in the hospital for three weeks including the surgery.... when he was released and taken back home he became unstable, not recognizing us at times.... He has become very agitated and anxious... yesterday he fell and we had to take him back to the hospital, and now he has two broken ribs which one of them proferated one of his lungs .... He is in excruciating pain, on top of that they somehow hurt his hip and his leg is all messed up he is not able to move it. when yesterday he was able to stand and take few steps... Doctors can not give him strong medication for his pain, since he is very thin weighs 84-90 lbs.... We truly regret convincing him to have the surgery.
I’m with Barb that the answer on this is super important.
what is his height? If he’s average 5’8” & weighs under 90 lbs, he’s beyond being underweight. There’s all kinds of health risks to being underweight, like they can have wasting syndrome. It’s the sort of thing you don’t think about as so many folks are overweight or obese. But severely underweight is its own health risks.
My mom was this. She had more than 10% weight loss within sequential 30 day periods. It was one of the reason why she qualified for skilled nursing care needed to go into a NH. They can have severe osteoporosis & don’t tolerate a lot of meds or meds don’t seem to affect them. As long as thier world stays contained & they eat & drink regularly they are kinda ok. She fell at her NH shattered a hip (she was pulling her wheelchair from behind her on way to arts & crafts). No surgery. For her, It wasn’t so much that anesthesia would be an issue (she had anesthesia & rehab 5 yrs prior for rotor tear & all ok) or that they couldn’t replace the broken hip but more that she now would not be able to follow directions for rehab due to her later stage Lewy body dementia and critically underweight so her body couldn’t compensate the shift in weight needed for rehab. She went onto hospice as totally bedfast. Took about 5 weeks to get her pain meds determined. She was on hospice 18 months & pretty pain free. Had a speciality bed & pneumatic mattress, geri chair & geri bathing chair. She actually gained a bit of weight on hospice for a while. Hospice staff 3 x a week & Totally worked in tandem with NH staff. She was under 60 lbs when she finally died. I wouldn’t be surprised if in-facility hospice is suggested to you all as your dads care plan as could be lots of pain meds monitoring needed & better in a facility if opioids done. So prepare yourself for this. Good luck.
That said, yes, anesthesia DOES cause terrible problems for the elderly, especially where dementia is concerned! Hospital delirium is also common; where they are having hallucinations and acting totally unhinged. Since your dad was in the hospital for 3 weeks (which seems excessive), he could very well have had a case of delirium as well. I witnessed this with my mother who was only in for 4 days with pneumonia, and she was seeing mice scurrying along the floor when there weren't any! It's just awful that your poor father is now in such pain with broken ribs and a perforated lung........they HAVE to give him SOMETHING to manage the pain, insist on it!!
He may need hospice care at this point; check with his PCP to see what s/he has to say on the matter. I'm so sorry you're all going through such a traumatic experience, my heart hurts for you. Sending you a big hug and my very best wishes for a good outcome here.
Is there a reason why dad was sent home and not to a rehab center for physical therapy?
Has dad been tested recently for a urinary tract infection, which often causes psychiatric-type issues in the elderly? INSIST on a test for a UTI even if he has no symptoms that the hospital staff can see besides the confusion.
Also, consider if it is time for hospice or palliative care.