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Adolescent daughter and possible heart disease

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Heart & Cardiovascular Disease
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Posted 4/4/2008 8:09 PM (GMT 0)
Our primary care doc is referring my 13 year old daugher to a pediatric cardiologist. Her symptoms first seemed like Mono. I then suspected Lyme Disease but since it's not common in our area, he insists he thinks it's her heart. I've listed her symptoms below. Just wondering if anyone else experienced these symptoms and what cardio diagnosis you received. Our appt. isn't for 2 weeks and I'm a nervous wreck. In the meantime, she is also seeing an infectious disease doctor on Monday.

Vertigo

Chest Pain

Racing Heart Rate

Intermittent Severe Sore Throat

Severe Headaches

Back Pain

Loss of Appetite

Weight Loss

Night Sweats

Eye and Ear Pain

Tremors (unexplained shaking)

Weakness, shaking and pain in her legs

Extreme fatigue (sleeping sometimes up to 18 hours)

Boughts of extreme emotional sensitivity -- cries easily during these times

Difficulty concentrating

Recent infection on her knee that appeared to be MRSA (antibiotic-resistant staph) but staph culture came back negative

I know some of these are very general but just wondering if anyone else experienced them, especially during adolescence, and ended up with a cardio diagnosis.

 

Posted 4/6/2008 12:45 PM (GMT 0)
Hi, I am 34, I had all of those things, still have some of them, I don't want to scare you, but I have BiPolar Disorder, I aslo just had a stroke 4 months ago which turned out to be associated with a PFO, a hole in my heart I have had since birth, some of those symptoms are due to that. I just had my PFO closed through cardiac cath 3 weeks ago,( can see my post on other thread "PFO/cardiac cath 2"). I also have a sluggish heart valve and thickening of the heart wall on the same side. I also have issues with my Thyroid.  Any and all of these symptoms can be associated to all three of these issues - thyroid, bipolar, and congenital heart defects. Feel free to ask me any questions, if I can be of any help. I am so sorry to hear that she is having this problem, I would not wish this on anyone. I hope this in not what she is headed for, the good news is that if it turns out to be a defect in he heart, like a hole of some sort, it is very easily treatable, and most of the time through a non-surgical procedure, or none at all. Hope this helps. ~

Posted 4/7/2008 5:31 PM (GMT 0)

Thanks so much for your reply. My daughter saw an infectious disease doc this morning and she is testing for Lyme Disease and West Nile Virus along with a whole list of other possibilities. She sees the cardiologist next Monday.

Have you ever been tested for a B-12 Deficiency, specifically with the urinary MMA test since the B12 serum blood test can come back fine even when a deficiency is present? I've done some research and discovered that all of my daughter's symptoms could also be attributed to a B-12 deficiency. I'm reading a book right now called "Could it be B-12? An epidemic of misdiagnosis."

All of your symptoms are indicated as possible B-12 deficiency-related items, including the Bi-Polar disorder. B-12 deficiency will damage the heart if left untreated long-term. Just a thought. My brother-in-law has a B-12 deficiency and now takes monthly B-12 shots along with a drug called Metanex (sp?) to help his body uptake folate. His doc just told him about a new study indicating a defective gene (MTH FR) is a potential cause of his body's inability to uptake the folate and support the absorbption of the B-12. They've tested him for the gene but no results yet.

Just thought I'd mention it to you. The B-12 deficiency is very easy to diagnose through the MMA urine test and apparently very easy and inexpensive to treat. I don't want to discount the bipolar diagnosis, as my best friend is bipolar and I know how often people dismiss it as unreal, but your symptoms struck a chord with me since I'm reading that book so I had to at least throw it out there as a possibility.

Take care and thanks for your response.

Posted 4/7/2008 5:40 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks for the input, much appreciated, unfortunately, we know for sure it is bipolar, runs in my family, myself, my sister, uncle, aunt, two cousins all on my mother's side, and the symptoms are quite obvious, and very well control with medication and lifestyle changes, which would not be the case if it were b12 deficiency, but thanks though.  I wish you all the best of luck with your daughter.  I just don't see her symptoms necessarily being heart related though, they seem more like depression issues, and puberty issues to me, except for the infection in her leg which could be an unrelated isolated event, you may be better off if you treat each symptom as a separate issue, rather than lumping them all together, some times when doctors do that, it is very easy for them to misdiagnose.

Posted 4/7/2008 5:41 PM (GMT 0)
these also look like fibromyalgia symptoms.

Posted 4/11/2008 1:47 AM (GMT 0)
I am new to this forum, I was surfing around here, but since I am a teen I was caught by your post. I have Fibro and those could be fibro symptoms... but right now I am actually looking at something else. I went to the doc yesterday just to check with my meds and I requested my ASO(anti-strep) titer to be checked, which has been high for about 3 years. Well, [one of my docs] calls today and says that if he didnt know me, just by reading my chart he would think I had rheumatic fever.

I researched it, and its possible. But, my point is, maybe you should look into this as well. Some of your daughters symptoms are similar. Its just a thought.

btw, I had been going from doc to doc for 4 years before I was dx with Fibro, and at one point in time I thought I had Lyme. I want to wish your daughter good luck at the doctor. I hope they find out what is causing her to have these symptoms. Take Care
Posted 4/11/2008 2:00 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks so much for your input. I have looked at fibromyalgia and it is on my list of possibilities. I haven't looked at rheumatic fever yet so I'll look into that one as well.
We see a cardiologist on Monday and the bulk of the symptoms have gone away again but the racing heart rate, chest pain and difficulty breathing are hanging on.
Take care.
Posted 4/11/2008 6:59 PM (GMT 0)
I hope it goes well and the cardio can help your daughter. Let us know what happens. Take Care.
Posted 4/29/2008 12:36 AM (GMT 0)
there are some auto immune disorders that fit these symptoms

has a MRI been done looking for tumors.

the mix of a tumor and a neoplastic disorder that is common with tumors would have those same symptoms also.
Posted 4/29/2008 11:39 AM (GMT 0)
Hi,
I wish you luck with your daughter. It must be so difficult. Did anyone check her hormones? At this age, her body is changing so dramatically it could be as simple as puberty.. I don't mean to downplay anything, I am not a doctor, but a mom of three girls and while they didn't have all those things, they had plenty of them. Just a thought. I wish you both well.
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