New Hill-Rom Vest for Sale

carrielamers

New member
My husband has received his lung transplant and we now have a
Hill-Rom Vest (model 104) for sale.  It is basically new with
only 60 hours on it.  He purchased it August 2005 and only
used it for 4 months.<br>
<br>
Because we live in Canada, we had to purchase it out-right.
 It is not a lease and insurance DID NOT pay for it.  We
are asking $7,000 US and will ship it overseas if needed.<br>
<br>
Serious inquiries can be emailed to carrielamers@hotmail.com.<br>
<br>
Thanks,<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
 

EnergyGal

New member
Two things that might help you.

First reconsider selling the vest because when you have a lung transplant you can still get infections and just a simple chest cold could benefit from some VESTing. I had a very healthy transplant for ten years and when I got my first bad chest cold I sure missed getting rid of my vest. I decided to hire a therapist because I felt with my cf lung experience that chest pt would speed up the healing process of the cold. You are making a huge mistake and if you miss the vest if your husband gets a chest cold (God Forbid) getting another one with the same insurance will be impossible.

It is nice that your husband got his Transplant. What a wonderful new life you both will have. Just do not think that a transplant is a cure for an illness. A transplant becomes another illness in a mild form and hopefully your quality of life is greatly improved for a long long time. You have to watch your health.

By the way when using the vest after a transplant it will help in the healing process of the scar tissue. Massaging your chest is amazing and the pain goes away much faster.

I know I had two double lung transplants.

On another note your price is way to high. You can get a vest with machine for two thousand dollars less and they are refurbished from the vest company and from Electromed.
 
I

IG

Guest
sell the sucker and keep a pulmo aid.

'By the way when using the vest after a transplant it will help in the healing process of the scar tissue.' Never heard of that, I wouldn't recommend it especially since you're (/he's) still healing. I couldn't even stand to have a bra around my chest for the first 3 months, not to mention a vest or anything constricting such as that! Tissue heals as it heals, can't really speed along the process unless you're going to cauterize something, and even that requires healing.

The only time I've EVER needed CPT was right after transplant when they were trying to get blood clots out of my lungs due to being put out for a week after transplant due to seizures.

When I've had rejection, colds, etc. doctors have never recommended CPT or vesting. An aerosol occasionally but that's it, which is why I say keep the nebulizer. The only way I can see using a vest would be that a condition deteriorates so much that you're actually bringing up sputum again.

But as risa points out if it ever gets to that point again a vest is somewhat easy to obtain given the prices on refurbished ones.
 

EnergyGal

New member
That is a good point Candice. The reason why I gave my vest away in the beginning was because it was the old model and took up way too much room. Took up a small closet. I was glad that I had a storage room back in my old apt. The new model is so little in comparison.
 

rcq925

New member
kay, so this may be a stupid question, but I'll ask anyway.

After you have a lung transplant, do you no longer need to do CF meds at all? By that I mean the nebulized meds (albuterol, Xopenex, Pulicort, Pulmozyme, ect.) or CPT ? Obviously you would still need your enzymes, but you no longer need the CPT at all? Wouldn't you want to continue with preventative meds with your new set of lungs to prolong your life even more?
 

LouLou

New member
Becky, once a CFer gets a lung transplant their lungs don't have CF anymore so the person would only need the lung meds and pt as much as you would... not at all (assuming you don't have CF). That being said the CFer trades one thing for another. He/she may not have the continual lung deterioration prevalent with CF but always runs the risk of rejection. I recently read that the lungs are the only transplanted organ that isn't capable of forgetting that it is foreign so it's a constant threat.
 

EnergyGal

New member
Lauren- All transplanted organs run the risk of rejection or they would not have to take anti rejection drugs.

What I think you might have heard could be- the lungs are the only organ that are exposed to the enviroment therefore there are many more risks involved. Rejection or infection can occur but with the newer transplant medications this is happening less often.
 

EnergyGal

New member
Hi Becky

That is a very good question. From my experience with both transplants I did not need CPT or the VEST but i chose to use the vest when I had a chest cold. When I needed the vest the most, I no longer had it so I asked for CPT and the doctors said I do not need it but if you think it would help then do it. So I did and I was happy with the results. I would get cupped on and maybe cough up one time but that one time was very helpful.

When I get a cold I take Albuterol and it helps. I take Advair twice daily all the time.
I am happy with my rigorous routine of exercise but every now and then if my sinuses seem a tiny bit congested I throw on the vest.
 

LouLou

New member
Thanks for the clarification Risa. WHen I read this in the news story about Lo Dietrich (see transplant section for link) I thought it was weird I'd never heard this before. I think your assumption is probably true of either Lo or the news reporter's mis-understanding. Thank you.
 

Ender

New member
<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote><i>Originally posted by: <b>Risa</b></i>

Lauren- All transplanted organs run the risk of rejection or they would not have to take anti rejection drugs.



What I think you might have heard could be- the lungs are the only organ that are exposed to the enviroment therefore there are many more risks involved. Rejection or infection can occur but with the newer transplant medications this is happening less often.</end quote></div>

Risa, i actually read something that said the exact same thing as lauren. I forget where though.

You look at success rates of kidneys and livers, I think they are a lot higher than lungs.
 

thelizardqueen

New member
Yeah but you don't breath stuff in to your lungs through your kidneys or livers. You can breath any type of bug into your lungs to damage them, but you can't do that with kidneys or livers. I would imagine that's why they have a higher success rate.
 

Ender

New member
<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote><i>Originally posted by: <b>thelizardqueen</b></i>

Yeah but you don't breath stuff in to your lungs through your kidneys or livers. You can breath any type of bug into your lungs to damage them, but you can't do that with kidneys or livers. I would imagine that's why they have a higher success rate.</end quote></div>

True, but i remember saying it was specifically about chronic rejection, and tricking the body into thinking it wasn't foreign. Grr where did i read that....?
 

Ender

New member
<a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://www.californialung.org/research/research_01fw.html
">http://www.californialung.org/...ch/research_01fw.html
</a>
here's one site. If you google lung transplant rejection rates, there should be a ton of info.

They say :

Lung transplant recipients like Kain get frequent checkups after surgery because the risk of rejection and infection is much higher for lungs than for other transplanted organs.

More than half of lung transplant recipients will face chronic rejection within the first 18 months, according to the researcher. This high rate of rejection is part of the reason five-year survival rates for lung transplant recipients is less than 50 percent while survival rates for heart, kidney and liver recipients is higher than 70 percent.

It says infection and rejection. I'm sure you can find more technical info, but there is a basis to what we said. I think hehe
 

Ender

New member
<a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://newsbureau.upmc.com/Emergency/LungTxAntiRejection.htm
">http://newsbureau.upmc.com/Eme...ngTxAntiRejection.htm
</a>
This was written 3 years ago. Anyone post tx ever remember taking this therapy? Sounds interesting.
 

Ender

New member
Maybe it is always considered foreign because it is always subjected to foreign particles, and so the white blood cells are always there fighting stuff off.

Never doubt Risa hahah

<img src="i/expressions/face-icon-small-tongue.gif" border="0">
 

thelizardqueen

New member
Here's an article to read:

<a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://ajplung.physiology.org/cgi/content/full/286/6/L1129
">http://ajplung.physiology.org/...tent/full/286/6/L1129
</a>
It says that the lung is rejected more often than any other type of solid organ due to chronic rejection known as bronchiolitis obliterans (BO). Indeed, BO is the primary reason why the 5- and 7-yr survival rates are worse for the lung than for any other transplanted organ.

<b>Edited to add:</b> Bronchiolitis obliterans is disease of the lungs where the bronchioles are plugged with granulation tissue. It is also known as "popcorn lung" or "popcorn workers' lung".

Bronchiolitis obliterans is a lung disease characterized by fixed airway obstruction. Inflammation and scarring occur in the airways of the lung, resulting in severe shortness of breath and dry cough. These symptoms do not go away. Bronchiolitis obliterans is often misdiagnosed as asthma, bronchitis, emphysema, or pneumonia. Chest X-rays and diffusing capacity of the lung (DLCO) are usually normal, but spirometry tests show fixed airway obstructions. This disease is irreversible and severe cases have often been placed on lung transplant waiting lists. (Hence getting yet another double lung transplant due to chronic rejection).

Here's some more info:

<a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://path.upmc.edu/divisions/pulmpath/bron02.htm">http://path.upmc.edu/divisions/pulmpath/bron02.htm</a>
 

EnergyGal

New member
Scientists that study Transplantation are still perplexed with our immune systems. Without medications transplants would not be possibe today. Perhaps in the future there will be other types of treatments but for now induction therapies help a great deal.

Organ Rejection is normal but an excessive amount is not and in most successful transplant cases patients are living ten and fifteen years and some of have lived to twenty. It all depends on many things and If I knew the details I would not be sitting at my desk I would be helping people get well.

Yes Risa has been wrong on many occassions. thank you for the vote of confidence kiel
 
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