My cardiologist says...

Congrats on getting the A-OK from your Doc!!! :thumbup:

Stress tests are useless on me s well...
they show I have a 30% block in the left side of my heart. :eek:
Had to go thru a heart cath to prove it wrong. :grumpy:

Glad you got the good news... keep up the good work! :thumbup:

.
 
Ken C. said:
Mike,
At 37 years of age I have already seen a cardiologist due to a positive marker on my nuke stress test. I'm not happy about it because I feel I'm in perfect health. I'm stressing out over it because I have a heart related health issues in my family and the end results were not satisfactory. It was suggested by my doc that I have an angiogram done to rule out any blockages. I'm very nervous about this because I had a friend die on the table during his procedure. 1% chance in 100 my ass!!!! I'm going to seek a second opinion. Right now I'm not on any drugs such as Lipitor but that may change after my next office visit with the new cardio doc.

Any word of advice for a guy who's sweating over this type of thing?
Click to expand...
Completely OT, but as a practicing GP, here's the low-down:

What you are referring to is not an angiogram but a coronarography (a different procedure altogether), i.e. they slip a tiny tube through your femoral artery and aorta inside the two coronary arteries that supply the blood flow to your heart muscle. It is an invasive procedure that - in most western countries - has an overall mortality rate of about 1 in 700 (about 0.15 %). It also needs to be said that most fatalities are due to unexpected findings, like overly congested blood vessels that are blocked completely when the catheter is passed through, or something similar (which also means that the same person would drop dead soon regardless of the procedure, and yes, I know it sounds brutal, but such is life).

So no need to sweat it, just do it. If the stress perfusion scintigraph indicated heart muscle damage, this is the only way to go. Also, don't delay for an unnecesary long time. And just in case you still beat around the bush - if you smoke, stop. Right. Now. Heart problems history in your family and smoking mix like fire and gasoline. I have seen several young fellas in their thirties suffer myocardial infarctions. All of them were smokers. No need to test your luck (my favorite one-liner: Luck can't last a lifetime unless you die young).

And, just for the record - for everyone chiming in:
If the stress perfusion scintigraph indicates heart muscle damage, it means the damage is there. Coronarography only shows the larger vessels, microvascular damage is still possible and often present. Ischaemic heart disease does not necessarily mean blocked or constricted epicardial coronary arteries.

Cheers, Rok

P.S.
Feel free to ask any questions. Or if you prefer, drop me a mail and we'll discuss it privately.
 
MikeH said:
1. My 13 year old bypasses look like new;
2. I have a "magnificent" heart muscle with an 80% expulsion rate (whatever that is, he seemed to be pleased with it);
3. Everything looks great;
4. The nuclear stress test was apparently an abberation;
5. We are not going to rely on stress test data for me any more;
6. Whatever I'm doing, keep on doing it.

Number 6 is of particular interest to me. I received my first Busse knive a few days after my heart surgery in '94, and have been buying them off and on since then. So now I can tell the wife, "hey, the doc said to keep buying them."
Click to expand...

Hooray!! :D:D:D:D:D:D:D

Now I have somebody to stand behind at Blade '08. :thumbup:;)

My life is complete. :)
 
OUTSTANDING NEWS:):)


You showed them:thumbup::thumbup:



Kisses,
Amy-0
 
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