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Posted 11/17/2009 11:14 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Everyone,
I just wanted to check in and let you know that the catheterization was done this morning and it looks okay.

The cardiologist said that there was some mild something or other, but other than that, everything looks okay.

He wants to see me in a week not my December appointment, to talk about the ST wave and the thing in the III lead

and this whatever it was on the echo they did, but at least my arteries aren't all clogged up on top of it.

So, I wanted to let you all know so that you weren't looking for me. I am supposed to be off my feet for 48 hours

and can't bend my leg at the 90 degree angle so I am not allowed to sit other than to recline back .....not sure why, but

that's what I was told.

Anyway, I will try to check in later.

Thank you all for the good wishes,
Sandi
Posted 11/17/2009 11:47 PM (GMT 0)
 

 

Hiiii Sandi!

I dont really understand about the leads &such, but yay for not having clogged arteries.

Rest up wont you (:

 

Erin

XOXO
Posted 11/17/2009 11:52 PM (GMT 0)
Just a guess-- when they do a heart cath they usually go through the groin and inject dye into the line so they can see the heart muscle. When they take out that line it has to form a clot so you won't bleed unnecessarily because it is a big artery that they were in. They want you to lay and not do a bunch of bending and stooping so that the clot won't dislodge. Like I said just an unedumcated guess!!
Posted 11/18/2009 3:42 AM (GMT 0)
Hi Sandi,

I'm so happy to hear that the cath went smootly & everything looks pretty good! You must be very relieved! Thanks for keeping us in the loop!

hugs,
Skeye
Posted 11/18/2009 8:48 AM (GMT 0)
Sandi,
Sounds like at least some good news. I hope you take your doctor's advice. You can post to us when you're up to it.

Hugs,

PaLady
Posted 11/18/2009 1:30 PM (GMT 0)
Good morning Sandi!.....Glad that everything went well for you!.....keep us updated, and take it easy now.

       Michael

Posted 11/18/2009 5:55 PM (GMT 0)
Hello Everyone,
I am really glad that I don't have to worry about cardiac vessel problems. It is a huge relief and I am thrilled. Now, though for the not so good news. I went this morning for the MRI of my wrist and the avascular necrosis is a bit more widespread than I thought, or I should say that showed on the xrays....it seems to be affecting not only that one bone, but both the ulnar, and radius, and the bones on both sides of the first row of bones closest to your wrist. [img]/community/emoticons/rolleyes.gif[/img] There are even some black spots and weird looking stuff going on in the bones nearest my fingers too, so I am not sure what that might be......arthritis maybe?

Anyway, I am not sure what to think now....and won't see the ortho until after Thanksgiving- that is a long time with this stuff, I hear.......ah well, get good news one day and not so good the next.....Can't have all good news right?

I may try to call the ortho's office though and see if I can get in if there is a cancellation....

Just figured I'd let you know.

It's weird to see bones that are supposed to be white, black on the cd.....but that's what they are......

Sandi
Posted 11/18/2009 11:34 PM (GMT 0)
Aw Sandi, let hope some of this stuff turns out to be arthritis. Hope your dr will see you sooner too. But very glad there are no heart issues to deal with. Take care.
Posted 11/19/2009 1:26 AM (GMT 0)
Thanks Susie. I have a friend who had this in both of her knees and both of her hips. She has since undergone two knee replacements and two hip replacements. She is doing really well but I have read some stories from some of the rest of the people that she knows with it and they have done horribly......if there is some rare disease out there, it's going to find a new host in me....first the Cauda Equina thing, now this.....
sorry, I'm having a temporary pity party ....I will get over it and celebrate the fact that I don't have any blood vessel blockages....at least there was some good news...
Sandi
Posted 11/19/2009 3:47 AM (GMT 0)
Sandi,
Can I come to your pity party, too? I'm a really great guest at those events!

Seriously, I hope maybe it's not going to be as bad as you're thinking re: treatment of all this.

((((((((((Sandi))))))))))))

PaLady
Posted 11/19/2009 4:31 AM (GMT 0)
Sandi

I am glad about the news  of your heart or least glad that it is not clogged arteries,  that eases the chances of a heart attack anyway! Is it more a an electrical conduction problem in the heart then?  That can always be treated with a pace maker if it is! Please do post and let us know what the problem turns out to be! In any event I do hope it all works out well for YOU!

As far as the bones in your arm and wrist, well..... That doesn't sound good at all!  How exactly can that be treated if it is that extensive?  I continue to keep you  in  my prayer as are so many of the folks on this forum are! I sure hope this all turns out alright for you!  Do you have much pain with all this going on in your wrist and arm?? It is alright for you to have a "pity party" there is nothing for you to feel bad about doing that. Your new hasn't exactly been something to celebrate about now has it? I sure do wish you  well! I do hope that all this works out the very best it can for you!

Good Luck to YOU Sandi!

White Beard

Posted 11/19/2009 5:58 AM (GMT 0)
Yes, PA Lady, you can certainly come to the party, in fact you all can.....we will have salsa and dips, and chips, and bbq ribs, and chicken and whatever else we want to have......and don't forget your party hats!!
I hope that it isn't as bad as I have read but even with the surgeries they do, it seems to be an ongoing problem even afterward and in some cases, the surgeries create new ones, in the loss of motion, lack of fusion, etc.....sounds like back surgeries all over again..
I showed the pictures to someone who has it and they told me that it would be great if it was only in the beginning stage, they might be able to try to transplant some blood vessels and bone graft......but he thinks it is way beyond that option......so I am going to try not to read anymore about it tonight. I will just make myself worry. Although I did get my PM to order the MRI of my hips too since I have been having problems with those as well and this AVN stuff seems to start in your hips first. I just need to make sure it isn't there as well.
Sandi
Posted 11/19/2009 6:06 AM (GMT 0)
Hi Whitebeard, I am guessing that the heart thing is something to do with the electrical signals since he was still talking about the S-T waves and the III lead changes, but I won't know until I see him in early December. I am hoping that some medication of some kind might be the ticket there......
If the problem in my wrist is advanced as it appears on the MRI pictures, then they can either try to remove the lunate bone( it is in the row of small bones closest to the ends of the radius and ulna, and they usually take out the bones on either side as well. It's called a proximal row corpectomy or something like that. It basically shortens the wrist, and the bones that are closer to your fingers are supposed to slide up into the empty places left by the other bones, but they can't do it if there is any indication of the bone dying in any of the other bones and it looks like there might be an old fracture or two in some of the other bones, and they also have some of the black holes in them as well as looking like there are bone chips missing in a few of them. There is also a hole at the bottom of the ulna and the radius looks like it has some of the necrosis starting at the end of it as well. So I am not sure exactly what my options are going to be, wrist replacement which doesn't have a good prognosis long term, fusing the wrist, killing off the nerves going into my hand, or what at this point......
That's what makes this so scary. It can happen and become so advanced and then something simple like picking up a bag that is a bit heavy can send the whole thing blown sky high......
I wish that I could get the pictures to post to show you what I mean.....
Sandi
Posted 11/19/2009 6:39 AM (GMT 0)
Awe, Sandi,
I do hope you can find a way to put this on a back burner in your mind for at least the night. I realize that's not easy. Sometimes I think I wish I didn't know all the things wrong with me! I can understand now what some call "stubborn" older people who refuse to go to the doctor. Of course, I'm not advocating we do that in reality, but sometimes I wonder if ignorance (or at least a little of it) really is bliss. Now you have all those pictures in your mind of your bones....maybe you could visualize them as white bone again as you lay your head on the pillow.

Oh, I'm not making any sense. I just wish there was more I could do to help. But I will hope it's not as bad as you're thinking, and that there is some treatment that won't have horrible side effects with it.

Hugs,

PaLady
Posted 11/20/2009 12:45 AM (GMT 0)
Thanks PA Lady.
I didn't sleep much last night, nor the night before. Too much to worry about these days. I do think that sometimes ignorance is bliss. As frustrating as it can be to have to wait to see a doctor for test results, sometimes, I have concluded that having information or access to it, at our literal fingertips, can be a bad thing. Especially when it comes to stuff like this.
I am a researcher at heart, I love to know what my options are, but in this case, none of them sound too simple or come with any real guarantees of success, so that just makes having access to that kind of information frustrating.
We'll have to see what the doctors said. I hope they get this hip MRI scheduled soon. It seems this stuff can get really bad almost overnight....and I am not looking to deal with a hip collapse.
Sandi
Posted 11/20/2009 1:13 AM (GMT 0)
Sandi,

I am in total agreement on 'ignorance is bliss'. I says this, as when I worked I got a crash course in orthopedics and neurology to neurosurgery, from reading medical records. I learned how to read Ct's & MRI , myelogram & discogram reports to the point I could predict who was having surgery. I learned what tests were not all that reliable. As a result of having too much knowledge I short changed myself when it came to both hands and arms. Now, I am stuck with permanent nerve damage in both hands and arms and its far too late for surgery. Mine was due to fall from a motorcycle. In essence, I know way too much. It was great for my job and a part of my job but it came back to haunt me in a personal way.

I can understand your fears totally. Just try to remember when it comes to surgery, sometimes talking to too many that have had the surgery is not always a good idea. Some folks have a tendancy to stretch things or says they had the very worst of things when in reality they didn't. I hope I am making sense in what I am trying to say here lol. Also, every case is different, every drs technique is different somewhat, also the post op care that is so important, many people simply will not listen to the dr and do the proper post op care that is so important.

By the way, I love pity parties so plan on counting me in, lol. I have been known to throw a few of those myself and do a pretty good job at it if I say so myself, lol.

By chance I wonder if any of the stuff relating to the ekg was it related to the electricity in the heart? A friend of mine had a problem with the electricity of the heart, found by accident. She had outpatient surgery to correct it and did great and has continued to do so.

Keep us posted.
Posted 11/20/2009 3:34 PM (GMT 0)
 

   Dear Sandi,

 

     Good morning. How are you feeling today? I hope your worries have eased a little, thou I fear they havnt. You are faced with so much, yet so very strong insipe of it all *hugg* I hope you can get into the doctor sooner. Waiting till after thanksgiving seems so far away. I wont chatt endlessly, I just wanted to stop by and say hello. *huggs*

A bright and cheerful get-well wish
especially meant to say,
That many warm and friendly thoughts
are with you every day.

*huggs*

   dani
Posted 11/21/2009 4:03 AM (GMT 0)
Susie,
You and I both fell from a motorcycle? How strange is that? I didn't exactly fall though, I was playing the role of a human missle from the back seat after we hit a deer. My husband got knocked off the bike and I went over his head and the handlebars down the highway a bit before crash landing , taking most if not all of the impact on my low back and legs, right shoulder. I wound up having a reconstruction of my right shoulder in 1995, various knee surgeries over the years, and then these two back surgeries. The first of which really messed me up, caused that spinal cord injury, and the second was a salvage job to save what I still had so that I didn't loose any more.
I have also learned to look at MRI's, CT scans and myelograms and know what is wrong, and what is going to need surgery, at least as far as orthopedically goes.
Ah well, I guess even when we know too much, at least we have some idea of what is happening, which is more than others.
I don't know, sometimes I think it all is a double edged sword.
You are right, people do have to follow what their doctor tells them both pre and post op........if they don't , they are setting themselves up for a huge set of complications they are ill prepared for.

You can come to any pity party that I plan.....I love having people come by, so that works for me. I don't do it often, but when I do , it is a humdinger!
It may be, I am guessing that it might be something electrical since he keeps talking about the ST wave thing and the III lead, but won't know until I see him again. It must not be anything too serious otherwise I would be seeing him sooner than early December. The discharge instructions said to see him in a week, but his office gave me an appointment for two weeks after the cath, which is early Dec......not sure which ones I am supposed to follow but since they had already scheduled an appointment for early Dec, I will keep that one.
Sandi
Posted 11/21/2009 4:08 AM (GMT 0)
Hi Dani,
I'm okay, just a bit worried about this avn stuff. I am hoping that it isn't in my hips too. One area is bad enough. I went to the dentist this morning and he pulled that tooth that I was talking about earlier. Thankfully, after 5 vials of novacaine , it wasn't too hurtful later.
Other than that, how are you doing? I appreciate you asking about me.......What is going on with you these days? I have to find a thread of yours to catch up, seems much of my week this week has been either recuperating from one thing or another......LOL
I don't wish a week like this one on anyone.
We need a new rule, only one procedure a week for any of us.......and no pain with any of then either......think we can get the doctors, and dentists to go along with it?
Take care sweetie,
Sandi
Posted 11/21/2009 8:12 AM (GMT 0)
Sandi,
I think I'm just shaking my head reading yours and Susie's posts. I used to have a smaller motorcycle when I was younger and I think I'm glad I didn't continue riding it! Hiting a deer on a motorcycle - Yikes!!!!! I've hit one with a car, that was bad enough.

One procedure a week. I'm all for that. Unless it's life or death, and as long as it doesn't screw with anyone's deductible or co-pays!

PaLady
Posted 11/21/2009 9:31 PM (GMT 0)
HI PA Lady,
We were on a highway headed for home when we hit it. It just appeared in the lane from the median I am guessing. It was mid July and they were out in force , that's for sure. I saw it, we hit it and that was it......I was airborne! LOL It's kind of funny now, but at the time, I was scared to death. I never lost conciousness, and seeing those headlights coming at you is enough to scare anyone.
I've never hit one with a car but the motorcycle was demolished. The fairing was collapsed into less than a foot wide and it was a huge fairing.
The one procedure a week rule would automatically mean that the doctors and dentists and hospitals can't do anything to punish us for having a limit........they are allowed to have them, why not us?
Sandi
Posted 11/22/2009 5:51 PM (GMT 0)
Sandi,
just wanted to chime in and say that I'm thinking of you and sending lots of extra soft gentle hugz,
a shoulder to lean/cry on and lots of prayers...
Keep us posted and please know we realy care about ya...
((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((Sandi))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))
Posted 11/22/2009 9:56 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks Chartreux,
I go back to the Ortho tomorrow morning. Good thing that I found the card otherwise I would have missed the appointment thinking it was the week after Thanksgiving sometime.
I am anxious to hear what he has to say and even more anxious to read the report myself. I also want to get the approval for the MRI of my hips done so that I can find out of it has also effected them or not. I am hoping for not.
This has me more worried I think than I have been in a while.....the idea of the femoral head collapsing is really scary. Given the extent of the bone death in my wrist, if it is in my hips, I am guessing that it would probably be comparable.
I did upload the pictures to photobucket if anyone is interested.......here is the link to it.
http://s125.photobucket.com/albums/p54/sandim1016/Wrist/
Posted 11/22/2009 11:30 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks Praying.......I will let you guys all know.......at least it's a first thing in the morning appointment so that I don't have to wait all day long for answers.
Sandi
Posted 11/23/2009 1:45 AM (GMT 0)
Good Luck tomorrow you are in my thoughts and prayers. Take care I care.
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