Things aren't allways what they seem ; health (cardiac) related

[firefighter3931]

I usually don't post much in the off-topic section but felt i had to share a recent experience with the members of our Charger family. This may help some of you guys/gals make an informed decision should a similar situation present itself.  

Saturday evening past (june 14) i began to have some shoulder pain on my left side. The pain was not something i'd felt before and it could best be described as having been smacked in the shoulder with a baseball bat. Wierd i thought at the time   As the evening progressed the pain increased in severity and pain killers were having no effect.   Typically in the past, sports related type injuries responded to meds but this one was different.

So, about 10pm i decide to get this checked out. Off i go to the ER and meet with the attending physician. I ask him to do some bloodwork and an Electrocardiogram to rule out a possible heart attack. At this point i didn't have any of the typical symptoms of an impending MI but sometimes ; things aren't allways what they seem The lack of respiritory distress, cold sweats, heavy chest pain etc...was leading me to form false conclusions. The ER physician's initial impressions based on the symptoms was that this was not cardiac related.

Fast forward 30 minutes and the EKG results and bloodwork come back. He reviews the results and concludes that one of the cardiac rythms is off and the enzyme levels indicate some cardiac issue is occurring. When the heart is in distress the blood chemistry will change....so we knew something was off. Fortunately we have a world class heart treatment facility close by so he faxed off the results and waited to hear back. Shortly afterwards they responded and recommended transport immediately.

Off I go in an ambulance with an ER nurse to the Heart Institute just shortly before midnight. Upon arrival they immediately hook me up to a cardiac monitor and draw more blood. At that time they also administer meds to relieve the pain and increase blood flow which immediately helps. The physician asks questions and performs an ultrasound which is inconclusive but she suspects it's a blood supply issue based on the symptoms and my response to the medication.

A few hours later a team shows up in my room and says we're going down for an angeogram. This is a test where they inject dye into your veins and take pics to see what's going on. Sure enough they find a blockage in one of my coronary arteries. So while i'm there and conscious they begin the repair work. Kinda neat to be watching them repair your heart while observing on a TV monitor.   Long story short ; they opened up the blockage with a stent and sent me back upstairs for further evaluation. This all happened on sunday morning (father's day). More blood is drawn and they're looking closely at the routine stuff that would normally precede a cardiac event.

Fast forward an hour and the bloodwork comes back. Everything is normal ; cholesterol is low, tryglicerides low, blood sugar normal (No diabetes) hemoglobin high, good red cell count. In summary, my blood chemistry is not showing any of the things a physician would typically see with a cardiac patient. Our conversation turns to family history and he asks about my parents. There is a strong history on my mothers side ; she passed away several years ago from complications related to type II diabetes and congestive heart failure. Bingo...we have found the problem.

So, we discuss the current situation and what this means going forward. It's actually very enlightening and informative. I asked if there was anything i was doing wrong or anyway this could have been avoided. Nope....this was going to happen at some point in your life based on genetic predisposition. As he explained it ; some folks have a sticky film inside their veins that allows plaque to form and create blockages. The healthier you are the longer you can prolong the eventual result (blockage). The good news is that there are drugs to make the arteries/veins slicker to prevent this from occurring in the future. So, from this point forward i'm going to be on a series of drugs to reduce cholesterol, increase blood flow and thin my blood out a bit.

With regards to injury, the cardioligist did indicate that there is some damage but that it was very minimal. Slight scarring of the muscle and it will bounce back with rest....great news ! He said the key to minimizing the trauma was quick intervention and treatment. I had made a good choice in going to the ER and having this unusual pain checked out and requesting a cardiac assessment even though the symptoms didn't indicate that this was the issue. I guess you could say i dodged a bullet  

The next 6 weeks are going to be tedious ; no work, no working out....just lots of rest to allow the heart muscle to heal up. I'm used to working 2 jobs and being busy but the alternative could have been much worse.  


The point of all this is to share my experience in the hopes that anyone experiencing something unusual takes the same steps that i did and seek an informed opinion/medical evaluation. I had none of the typical symptoms related to cardiac distress but knew at the same time that things were not right. Acting on that hunch saved me from severe heart damage and possible death. Life will return to normal and i'll be able to return to my normal activities/work with a little help from the pharmaceutical industry. I actually feel quite good at the moment....best i've felt in the past few months.

The downside is that I won't be able to make Carlisle this year because my driving priveledges are suspended for 4 weeks. I was really looking forward to going this year. Have a great time and hoist a few cold ones for me....and please post some pics  



Ron

[Mike DC]

Wow, close call!  Glad you're okay.  

It does ram the point home - when you think something isn't right, don't ignore it!  Doctors are only human and science isn't infallible either.


Every time I read much about cardiovascular/cholesterol/etc, I come away feeling like we probably don't understand it as well as we think we do.  I wouldn't be surprised if there were major revisions to the picture in the future.    

[Bob]

Thank you Ron for that testimony and sound advice And I'm glad you are on the road to recovery.

God Bless

Bob

[Back N Black]

Wow, Glad you're okay. I had a similar issue two years ago. Take care.

[twodko]

A huge bullet dodged indeed! I'm very glad your OK as I'm sure your family is. Goes without saying, as we age things start to feel ever so slightly different. Lots of the "no reason for these" aches and pains stuff but some are very subtle  red flags in disguise as yours was.
You situation is a prime example of taking action when the usual medicine cabinet elixirs have little effect.

I'm recovering from L3-L2 fusion w/instrumentation and revision of the S1-L4 spinal extravaganza I so thoroughly enjoyed 9/2008.

Got home from the VA hospital last Friday and it's a slow painful sobering thing working through recovery.
I'm only 60 and it still pisses me off that I'm not longer invincible!  Now I have to give up cage fighting,
timber felling and boulder rolling. The VA docs told me that knitting can be very rewarding at my age. Funny bastards. 

Stay healthy bro. We need you.

[Silver R/T]

Glad you're doing better, fast acting on your behalf might've saved your life.

[Tilar]

I hate that you're going to miss Carlisle, been a while since we've made the same show, but I'm glad you found the problem when you did, this way you will at least be able to make more shows. 

I doubt I could keep up with you hoisting a few, but I'll do what I can to help take up your slack.     

[bill440rt]

VERY glad to hear you are OK, Ron!
Like others' stated, fast acting on your part & you caught this in time. Be well, rest up.
Sorry to hear but you WILL be missed at Carlisle!   

[RECHRGD]

Geeze Ron, sorry you had to go through this, but good on you for acting fast.  Sounds like Canada's health care system isn't as bad as some make it out to be......

[charge69]

Firefighter,  glad things worked out for you and give your heart the FULL time off the doctors recommend.  It will be tempting to start back to work early as you will feel much better with the repaired artery but, just take it easy for a while.  Happy you recognized that there was something wrong and got treatment as soon as you did.  Most men try to ignore the warning signs and keep going.

[Charger-Bodie]

Wow Ron! Glad to hear you came out of it with minimal effect. Take care.

[nvrbdn]

glad to hear you are feeling better. hope the new meds do the trick.

[SRT-440]

Thanks for sharing your story and I'm glad your ok brother! Get some rest! 

[68X426]

Great to hear Ron that you'll still be with us.   

Good thing that voice in your head said "turn away from the light", and you listened. 

Here's to a fast recovery and Carlisle in 2015.

[rt green]

no trama.  stay off the charger gas pedal. glad to hear you're going to be ok.   bruce

[XH29N0G]

Wow, Ron.  I am glad you caught it, and glad it all worked out.  Have a speedy recovery.

[bakerhillpins]

Glad to hear that you were able to find the trouble early and deal with it. Looked forward to seeing you at Carlisle but introductions can wait.  To a quick and uneventful recovery!

[TUFCAT]

Ron, that's really good news. Its so important to pay close attention to those warning signals! Thankfully you knew how to interpret them.  

You took this thing seriously, and did the right thing.  There's no reason to be macho when it comes to health - - the "tough" part is knowing when to get your ass to the hospital.

I'm super glad to hear you're doing okay     but sad we're not going to see you at Carlisle this year... .  

[Cooter]

Ron, just goes to show.....if the oil pressure ain't right, and you don't shut it down immediately,  coulda been much worse. Glad to hear the 'oil pump' is still pumpin. Dude, I was so looking forward to that handshake.

[Dans 68]

I'm glad to hear a health story with a good ending, Ron. Thanks for sharing. 

Dan

[Paul G]

Glad to hear your going to be well Ron. We never know what is just a pain that will go away, and what is not. Thank God you had the sense to go get checked right away. 

[charger1972]

Wow Ron , glad your Okay . Going through all that and still taking the time to answer my questions . Thanks Ron , and again glad your okay .

[myk]

Jeez man I don't know how we and the other people in your life would do without you, so I'm glad you're on the mend after averting potential disaster. 

This is an excellent post; most of us aren't pups anymore and we would all be wise to pay as much attention to our health as we do our cam 'specs or wheel size debates...

[garner7555]

Great post Ron.  Glad to hear you caught it quick! 

[firefighter3931]

Thanks for the kind words and well wishes....it means a lot  

To all the guys who've experienced health problems....best wishes for a quick recovery and improved health. My primary motivation for this post is the hope that others will learn and if the time comes take immediate action and avoid unnecessary risk and/or damage.  

In retrospect, some of the signs were there. My energy level had dropped but i just reasoned that i was putting in too many hours at work and not getting enough rest. I did not have any other symptoms so it was easy to put it on the back burner. I guess we all do that sometimes and rationalize it one way or another.  

The medical team was fantastic and provided top shelf care....can't say enough as to how well i was treated. It was wierd being in the back of an ambulance and being the patient....i've never been in that position before. Normally i'm the one doing chest compressions or administering forced ventilations. The EMS crew was great and kept the mood light for the ride in.  

The medical staff at the Heart institute were very efficient and friendly. I'd been there before delivering cardiac arrest patients and knew how fantastic they were but my time there was short because they take over after we drop off the patient and we're put back into service and leave. I got to see firsthand what goes on from the inside and it was impressive.  

The Cardiology team and nursing staff did a great job on both the repair work and education side. I learned a lot about coronary function and the hidden issues that some folks face. The sticky film vein/artery issue was something that i was not aware of. It's amazing the technology and drugs that we now have available. Not too long ago this type of repair would have required open heart bypass surgery. To think that a tube could be inserted through a vein and fished up to the injured area and subsequently repaired from the inside is simply mind boggling. Being conscious and able to watch was/is simply amazing. Like Cooter said ; my oil pump was tuned up and i got to see it, lol !  

Here are a few pics for your viewing pleasure....a before and after shot of the damaged coronary artery. The blockage was not complete but getting close. The ticker was talking to me and fortunately i listened. My hope is that everybody will do the same whether it's themself or a family member feeling not quite right. Don't ignore an unusual pain and get yourself checked out ASAP  


Ron