Submitted by Dr T on July 11, 2011 – 8:29am in Cardiac Risks Question: Hi. I am a 42 year old male. I just had a physical and my HDL was 29.0. My total chlesterol was 137, Tri 99, LDL 88.2, VLDL 19.8. I weigh about 188 lbs and am 5-10″ tall. I should probably lose about 5 – 10 …
Pregnant and Peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM)
Pregnant and Peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM) Submitted by Dr T on July 10, 2011 – 8:02am Question: Hello. I am 38 weeks pregnant and last week I went into the hospital for severe dehydration and they were all set to let me go, but the on call resident said she didn’t like the way my heart sounded and ordered an EKG/ECG… …
Are insured patients an easy target for unnecessary procedures?
Submitted by Dr T on July 9, 2011 – 5:57pm in Professionals A recent article about usage of percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI) in the US showed that almost 70% of “non-acute” patients had private insurance, not noted as a factor in the patients needing urgent or emergency procedures: In addition, this group of patients was often characterized by the presence …
Worried about peripartum cardiomopathy
Submitted by Dr T on July 9, 2011 – 10:21am Question: I have pregnancy induced PVC’s and PAC’s with some runs of NSVT. A holter showed I have about 7000 per day. I had an echo done in May that was clear. But, I have heard of peripartum cardiomopathy which occurs in the final month or months after pregnancy, and …
New chest pains when suddenly scared
Submitted by Dr T on July 8, 2011 – 9:39am in Chest Pain Question: I recently was driving and thought I was going to be hit by an oncoming vehicle. I was very suddenly scared. When this happened my entire left arm went numb and it almost seemed paralyzed with this feeling slowly wearing off over 30 minutes. I had …
I am afraid to get hypertension
Submitted by Dr T on July 8, 2011 – 9:20am in Other Question: I am wondering what’s the best way to lower Blood pressure. I had a normal blood pressure checked before and I am afraid to get hypertension. Are there any foods I should eat rather than medications? Thank you. I am wondering what’s the best way to lower …
About A fib and V tach, PVCs and PACs, tachycardia and arrhythmia
Submitted by Dr T on July 8, 2011 – 8:56am in Your heart rhythm Question: Why are A-fib and V-Tach classified under tachycardia arrhythmia while PVC’s and PAC’s are not under the same category? A PVC/PAC occurs occasionally, leaving your basic heart rate unchanged. With A fib and V tach your basic heart rate usually changes. The significance of any …
Are patients getting the right cardiac care in the US?
Submitted by Dr T on July 7, 2011 – 7:52am in Professionals Between 20-60% of patients with stable coronary disease may be getting unnecessary coronary stent procedures: The latest issue of JAMA the use of more than 500,000 PCIs in over 1,000 U.S. hospitals between July 2009 and September 2010. Of these, almost 150,000 patients were classified as non-acute; 71% …
Marfan syndrome follow-up question
Submitted by Dr T on July 6, 2011 – 8:30am in Cardiac Risks Question: Thank you very much for giving a real response. I am diagnosed with marfan syndrome. and I am also on Beta blockers. I have had my aorta measured a few times and it was around 4.6 cm. I read in your article that people often get …
Safe Heart rates in Marfan Syndrome
Submitted by Dr T on July 5, 2011 – 1:59pm in Other Question: Can you tell me what is a safe heart rate for someone with Marfan syndrome during exercise? I have seen 100 bpm suggested, but that is quickly reached even while walking. I seem to be able to do very little exercise at all beforehitting this limit. Where …