Cardiac health and paranoia…

[Wookie]

Chronic debilitating fatigue. By debilitating I mean she couldn't be at work more than a couple of hours.

 

[Lorenzoid]

Oh.

 

[Rred]

An excellent point, doc. And the kind of esoteric interaction that is all the more reason to have a "diving cardiologist", not just a cardiologist, give the OP a workup.

 

[Duke Dive Medicine]

An excellent point, doc. And the kind of esoteric interaction that is all the more reason to have a "diving cardiologist", not just a cardiologist, give the OP a workup.

Would that there were enough of those to go around. A good diving physician could also provide a reasonable answer.

 

[BertStevens]

I have a family history of heart disease. I've always assumed a heart attack was when, not if. A couple of years ago, I decided I'd rather meet my cardiologist in his office, than on his table. He sent me for a cardiac calcium CT scan. The assumption is that any calcium on the scan equals buildup in the arteries. My number came back zero!

I still see him to manage my BP meds. At my recent visit, we were discussing heart disease, and he mentioned that studies of autopsy results during the Korean War showed 20 year old kids with some coronary buildup. So it starts young and takes decades to build up. That information, combined with my zero cardiac calcium score, lead him to believe I no longer need to worry about when!

 

[DocVikingo]

Oops - I did find a reference to cardio stress testing and 13 METS. But the test is only encouraged if the doctor has some doubts. It is not mandatory.

The 13 mets standard has been been conditionalized over the past couple of years or so to what IMHO is a much more reasonable position.

You might find the following informative:

1.How many MET's should the rec diver be able to handle?+

Regards,

DocVikingo

 

[J_Rod]

For anyone...but the good Duke Doc, in particular...

While I'm diving....NONE of this is in my mind....while I'm reading and reflecting....I am becoming more paranoid....sort of like looking up symptoms on one of the medical websites.....or listening to the fast talker on a Pharma commercial.....I GOT THAT!!

My story...49, Very athletic child/young adulthood...Always suffered from hypertension (family thing). Been medicated since 20's (Ca Channel Blocker) ECG always normal during annual physical. Until a pre-op check for hernia surgery a year ago....in 4 months, I went from "normal" to "abnormal"...indication of elongated S waves and inverted T waves. Cardio says, "You show signs of damage due to a heart attack". The only thing I did differently over that time, was drink my cousin Tickle's moonshine...ok, he is not Tickle, but he does make some good moonshine. So I go through a battery of tests, Echo (normal), stress (results support damage), nuclear stress (normal circulation)...have hernia surgery and get on with my life...go in for annual this year, and see first ECG as "Abnormal" the tech says "hang on", does the test again, and it comes out "Otherwise Normal" and she puts that one in my records...I am one of those guys...you can give me bad news, but I'm not going to look for it. I never heard anything else about it.

Never have I had even A chest pain until I was told this. The only time I remember having anything I noticed, was last Mini-season in The Keys on snorkel (all day, not tired but holding breath and pushing limits) and this is AFTER initial diagnosis. Straightened out on the way back to dock with some beers and a turkey sandwich, so I've not thought of it again...until now...This was before my last "Otherwise Normal" ECG, so I choose to take that to mean nothing had changed for the worse. I have no pain, no shortness of breath, I am NOT in the best shape anymore, but coach, play with my boys, and am as active as I need to be. I've continued diving in various conditions from both boat and beach with no concerns....and I suppose I will continue until something (probably not someone) tells me to stop. I have 3 boys that need to get addicted to the sport before I am done....Any thoughts?

 

[Duke Dive Medicine]

J_Rod, that depends a lot on the condition of your heart at present. It's interesting that one EKG came out "abnormal" at your annual physical but the second one said "normal". There is a computer algorithm that reads the EKG on the machine but that's not a substitute for a cardiologist. Absent any other information I don't think I'd be reassured by what the machine said especially if the tech had to re-run it to have it say "normal". Are you followed by a cardiologist? If not I recommend you pick a good one and get worked up, then take the results to a diving physician. If you PM me your location I can let you know who's close to you.

Best regards,
DDM

 

[J_Rod]

J_Rod, that depends a lot on the condition of your heart at present. It's interesting that one EKG came out "abnormal" at your annual physical but the second one said "normal". There is a computer algorithm that reads the EKG on the machine but that's not a substitute for a cardiologist. Absent any other information I don't think I'd be reassured by what the machine said especially if the tech had to re-run it to have it say "normal". Are you followed by a cardiologist? If not I recommend you pick a good one and get worked up, then take the results to a diving physician. If you PM me your location I can let you know who's close to you.

Best regards,
DDM

Thank you, sir. I do have a Cardiologist that I will call. PM on the way...

 

[Duke Dive Medicine]

PM sent back.

Best regards,
DDM