Prayers Please--BF''s dad

[MiniMouse]

Appletini, my thoughts go out to you, your BF and family. I pray that your BF''s Father pulls through and recovers fully. Recovery vibes on their way!!!

 

[strmrdr]

prayers outgoing and will continue.

 

[HOUMedGal]

I keep checking back, hoping to see good news...and will continue to do so!! Sending prayers...

 

[appletini]

Many thanks to all of you for support. Sorry its taken me so long to update, but I haven't had computer access.

I went to visit at the hospital yesterday, so now I have more information.

The heart attack happened when he was at work on Friday. At first he thought maybe it was indigestion, but he's never had problems with that before, well he quickly realized it was something more serious and his co-worker took him to the hospital (luckily it was only 1 mile from the office).

At the hospital the ICU was full, so he has ended up getting another room. At some point he did go unconsious and I think this was his body's reaction to the pain. He'd a stress test on Tuesday, and his wife and the hospital both called the doctor to get the results, well the doctor never called back.

He also had a fever, but it was gone by Saturday and everything else checked out good. Its really odd b/c he doesn't have high cholestoral, he's not overweight, he plays golf twice a week, so its not like he doesn't do anything. He has high blood pressure, but takes medication for that. So it might just be stress.

BFs mom went to the hospital (she lives about 30 minutes away). The BF went to visit that night, and the BFs sister flew in from DC on Friday night. They told his other sister to stay at school and finish her finals and that she had to make 100s on them, because if she did bad in school, then her dad wouldbe really stressed out.

Saturday I went to the hospital with the BF and his sister. We spent most of the day there. Since he wasn't in an ICU room there weren't any visitor restrictions. Also his fever had broken so that was good. And they said that he looked a lot better compared to the day before. This also gave his mom a chance to go home and take a shower...she was going to take a nap, but people kept calling. BFs dad was awake most of the day, but took a few little naps. He'd get a little fiesty and then get worn out. He even wanted us to go to the office and get his brief case but we said NO. Also they had DVD players in all the rooms, so it was nice to have something to pass the time.

He's going to have a heart cathiterization tomorrow morning. Depending on the results, he might be transferred to another hospital in the medical center. Hopefully it will be something simple like an angioplasty (sp) and nothing major like a bypass.

Thanks again for all of your support!

 

[Kaleigh]

Sending more prayers, hope all goes well tomorrow. Thanks for the update. How is your BF doing??

 

[MissAva]

I am glad his fever has broken. I pray that his surgery goes well and that he will be home for the Holidays.

 

[AGBF]

Date: 12/11/2005 3:11:20 PM
Author: appletini
He's going to have a heart cathiterization tomorrow morning. Depending on the results, he might be transferred to another hospital in the medical center. Hopefully it will be something simple like an angioplasty (sp) and nothing major like a bypass.

Angioplasty is spelled correctly . It sounds as if the hospital is following the correct protocol. I do not want to upset any applecarts there, because being in a hospital is stressful enough without trying to micromanage everything. BUT a good cardiac unit can do the cardiac catheterization and, if needed, the angioplasty at the same time. My husband, like your boyfriend's father, was at a hospital for the former which did no yet perform the latter. It wasn't the end of the world, but my poor husband had to undergo catheterization twice this way.

IF someone has the energy to tackle this, he might want to ask the hospital where their patients have angioplasty done. That person could then request that the cardiac catheterization be done at that hospital so that, should angioplasty be needed, it can be done at the same time. I have been the advocate of many family members and I know that it is sometimes better just to go along with the hospital. I am not trying to cause MORE stress! It is just an idea.

My husband was also not overweight, had no cholesterol problems, and no high BP. There was no history of heart trouble in his family. Yet, at 53, he had a heart attack that seemed to us to come out of the blue. (His stress tests had all been fine!)

I am glad that this appears quite manageable. My heart goes out to all of you.

Deborah

 

[AndyRosse]

I''m so glad to hear that he is stable. Hopefully he won''t need any big procedures, and he can recover quickly!

 

[appletini]

Oh I forgot to mention that there was some fluid around the heart and lungs.

The BF just called with a new update. The doctor just stopped in after the enzyme analysis....it turns out that it was a virus in the heart that caused the heart attack, and not blockage. The good news is that there is no damage to heart. Not sure what the next steps will be...this might explain why he had a fever.

My BF keeps thanking me for being with him yesterday, and I keep telling him that he doesn''t have to thank me, I wanted to be there.

I''ll keep y''all posted as I know more. Thanks again for all the well wishes.

 

[pebbles]

Hmmm....is he still going to have the cardiac catherization anyway? I''m sorry if I didn''t read all your other posts correctly, but did he have any other tests to determine whether or not there is blockage? Usually the catherization is the best way to determine blockage; the enzyme tests tell whether or not a heart attack actually took place, although some of the enzymes determine inflammation (so maybe if those were normal, there wasn''t any inflammation or blockage?).

I''m glad he is feeling better.

It is a total misnomer that the only people that have heart attacks are the ones that are 30 lbs overweight, have high cholesterol and blood pressure and smoke. Many people that have heart attacks have none of those underlying factors. I''m glad your BF''s father realized something was wrong and went to the hospital immediately. Men especially have a tendency to deny the symptoms and wait until it''s too late.

I hope if he does have the cath that all goes well and no blockage is found. If there is some, as Deb said it is best corrected at the same time.

 

[moremoremore]

Wow! That is scary....glad he''s fiesty! Fiesty is good! Glad there is no damage...

 

[HOUMedGal]

I''m sooo glad to hear he''s doing better. It''s things like this that remind us to always tell the ones we love how we feel whenever we get the chance!

 

[icekid]

appletini- I''m so glad that it sounds like he is doing better! cardiac cath is definitely a good idea so they can better idea of exactly what is going on in his heart.

and as pebble mentioned, you don''t have to have hypertension, obesity, and high lipids to have a heart attack- it''s really important to look at the family history for heart disease.

 

[hoorray]

My husband has had a heart attack (he is genetically inclined, but very healthy otherwise). He''s had 2 or 3 angioplasties and a couple of stints. he is healthy as a horse now, and I consider the heart attack (which was minor) to have been a godsend, as it got him into proper care and made us aware of heart disease, how many people it impacts (women included), and what can be done to lesson the risks.

We are now involved with the American Heart Association, trying to give back a little, and help educate people about the risks and treatments. it is just amazing what kind of progress has been made on the heart front in the past few years. The number of open heart surguries is down something like 50% in the past few years due to all the advances on other fronts (better meds, less invasive methods, etc.)

I really hope you FIL recovers fully, and that his case turns out to be like ours -- no long term damage, and educational about the state of his health and heart. My prayers ae with you and your extended family.

 

[Angel7]

I''m glad he''s doing better and I hope he has a speedy recovery!

 

[appletini]

He''s having the heart cathiterization in the morning. If everything looks good then he might be going home tomorrow, but of course with some bed rest and no work for the week.