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Heart Disease (Expert Forum)
Re: Should I contact my Doc?
This forum is for questions and support regarding heart issues such as: Angina, Angioplasty, Arrhythmia, Bypass Surgery, Cardiomyopathy, Coronary Artery Disease, Defibrillator, Heart Attack, Heart Disease, High Blood Pressure, Mitral Valve Prolapse, Pacemaker, PAD, Stenosis, Stress Tests.
Re: Should I contact my Doc?
by Barbara__0__0, Jan 01, 1995 12:00AM
Posted By Barbara on March 17, 1999 at 11:18:06:
In Reply to: Re: Should I contact my Doc? posted by CCF CARDIO MD-APS on March 09, 1999 at 07:27:04:
I am an insulin dependent, female, 41 year old diabetic. I have been diabetic for 12 years. I been having some bouts of shortness of breath and my doctor ordered a stress test and thallium scan. The stress test showed a problem but the doctor said the thallium scan was fine. My doctor said my heart sounds strong. The problem is I still experience shortness of breath and my blood pressure ranges from 143/85 to as high as 170/110. Is it possible for a thallium scan to be a false negative - could I still have a problem that didn't show up? Also, with my blood pressure going up, should I call my doctor now or wait until my next appointment in May?
I really appreciate your help. I find the information I get from your sight useful in being a better patient and it helps me to better understand what is going on with me.
Thanks,
Barbara
Dear Barbara,
Yes the thallium can "miss" things as it is designed to look just for one
particular problem: decreased blood supply to areas of the heart AND it doesn't
even pick that up 100% of the time. In other words Barbara, your symptoms are
what you should pay attention to, not just the test results.
Diabetics often have atypical signs and symptoms of heart disease and this makes
it more difficult to diagnose. As well, "false-positive" thalliums are more likely
in women than men! And that is not the only test available to evalute you.
Definitely call you doctor and see him as soon as possible, and if that is
not a possibility, go to an emergency room or find a cardiologist who can
evaluate your significant cardiac risk factors and your recent problems.
I hope this information is useful. Information provided in the heart forum is for
general purposes only. Only your physician can provided specific diagnoses and therapies.
Feel free to write back with further questions. Good luck!
If you would like to make an appointment at the Cleveland Clinic Heart Center, please
call 1-800-CCF-CARE or inquire online by using the Heart Center website at
www.ccf.org/heartcenter. The Heart Center website contains a directory of the
cardiology staff that can be used to select the physician best suited to address your cardiac problem.
I saw my doctor yesterday. He was very concerned about my blood pressure
particularly because I am starting to show some kidney disease. He increased my
Atenolol to 200 mg per day (take along with 5 mg Plendil and 40 mg Lotensin
per day. In regards to my cronic shortness of breath - he discussed my case
with some of his colleagues and felt I had had a good work up with the stress
test (showed something abnormal) and a thallium scan (which was OK). He said
additional tests would have a good chance of giving false positives so that may
not tell us much. He did say I could follow up with a cardiac cath but he was
not going to pursue it. Should I get with a cardiologist and get a second
opinion or should I wait and see if my symptoms change?
Thanks so much!
Barbara
In Reply to: Re: Should I contact my Doc? posted by CCF CARDIO MD-APS on March 09, 1999 at 07:27:04:
I am an insulin dependent, female, 41 year old diabetic. I have been diabetic for 12 years. I been having some bouts of shortness of breath and my doctor ordered a stress test and thallium scan. The stress test showed a problem but the doctor said the thallium scan was fine. My doctor said my heart sounds strong. The problem is I still experience shortness of breath and my blood pressure ranges from 143/85 to as high as 170/110. Is it possible for a thallium scan to be a false negative - could I still have a problem that didn't show up? Also, with my blood pressure going up, should I call my doctor now or wait until my next appointment in May?
I really appreciate your help. I find the information I get from your sight useful in being a better patient and it helps me to better understand what is going on with me.
Thanks,
Barbara
Dear Barbara,
Yes the thallium can "miss" things as it is designed to look just for one
particular problem: decreased blood supply to areas of the heart AND it doesn't
even pick that up 100% of the time. In other words Barbara, your symptoms are
what you should pay attention to, not just the test results.
Diabetics often have atypical signs and symptoms of heart disease and this makes
it more difficult to diagnose. As well, "false-positive" thalliums are more likely
in women than men! And that is not the only test available to evalute you.
Definitely call you doctor and see him as soon as possible, and if that is
not a possibility, go to an emergency room or find a cardiologist who can
evaluate your significant cardiac risk factors and your recent problems.
I hope this information is useful. Information provided in the heart forum is for
general purposes only. Only your physician can provided specific diagnoses and therapies.
Feel free to write back with further questions. Good luck!
If you would like to make an appointment at the Cleveland Clinic Heart Center, please
call 1-800-CCF-CARE or inquire online by using the Heart Center website at
www.ccf.org/heartcenter. The Heart Center website contains a directory of the
cardiology staff that can be used to select the physician best suited to address your cardiac problem.
I saw my doctor yesterday. He was very concerned about my blood pressure
particularly because I am starting to show some kidney disease. He increased my
Atenolol to 200 mg per day (take along with 5 mg Plendil and 40 mg Lotensin
per day. In regards to my cronic shortness of breath - he discussed my case
with some of his colleagues and felt I had had a good work up with the stress
test (showed something abnormal) and a thallium scan (which was OK). He said
additional tests would have a good chance of giving false positives so that may
not tell us much. He did say I could follow up with a cardiac cath but he was
not going to pursue it. Should I get with a cardiologist and get a second
opinion or should I wait and see if my symptoms change?
Thanks so much!
Barbara
