constant chest pain after stent placements

I am 47 year old male, very athletic but unfortunately 4 months ago I had a heart attack/my left ventricle artery was 100% occluded/ and 2 regular metal stents were placed in my left artery. It was a big shock for everybody, especially for me, since my cholesterol was 170 at that time and even during my heart attack my blood pressure was 124/80. Plus genetically nobody has had or died of heart attack among my relatives. I do not eat fried or fast food so my diet was generally ok. My pain never stopped after that- I was experiencing constant chest pressure and shortness of breath but my doctor here did not pay any attention. He was saying that “etiology of my pain is not known but it shouldn’t be anything cardiac since my stress test was ok”.Last month I ended up in the emergency room with re-stenosis /one of the stents was clogged 99% and another stent was placed on the top of those two. This time was Xience 5- drug eluted stent that went on the top of the other two. The doctor started paying a little attention and even apologize that he did not listen to me.Since then/it’s been only a month/ I continue to experience the same problems. Every day I have pain- it doesn’t matter if I exercise or just sit in my office. The pain may start in the middle of the chest but moves to right or left, goes to back/upper part only/ and my shoulders/. Right above my breast bones hurt sometimes more and it is very tender to touch. Before I had my heart attack, I have never experienced anything like that- everything started after the stents were placed. Any suggestions or comments will be greatly appreciated- I can not function normally. I hope the stem cell science will advance much faster than we anticipate and will bring a new avenue and hope to people like us.

[Flycaster305]

That's quite a history, Tony.  I'm sorry you have so many problems.  I have a couple of questions:
Normally an artery that is 100% blocked isn't/can't receive a stent, but is bypassed.  I do know that sometimes arteries are bored out, but I don't know much about that, others on this board can give more educated answers about that procedure.  Also, I don't quite understand what you meant when you said " another stent was placed on the top of those two".  Do you mean it was placed at a higher position in the left ventricle, or do you mean it was placed inside the other two stents.

Chest pain has to be be checked out.  You mention that your breast bone is very tender to touch.  Normally, that isn't a symptom of a blockage.  It could be you have some restinosis occuring as well as a muscular/nerve pain.  

I'm assuming you are taking a statin like Vytorin, and the blood thinners 81mg aspirin, and Plavix. If not, you absolutely should because of the restinosis history.  Vytorin is a statin that works to reduce ingested cholesterol as well as cholesterol that is manufactured by your liver.  I'd also take a good quality fish oil, 1 gram in the morning, 1 gram in the evening.  Fish oil reduces the inflammation of the arteries and also reduces the triglicerides (triglycerides), which may also be your problem.  However, take a fish oil supplement from non-farmed fish, be prepared to pay more for it.  Google Wild Fish Oil or something like that to find it.  Avoid fish oil from Atlantic and Chilean waters, they are almost always farmed fish.

I went through a wild period of restinosis, so understand your frustration.  Keep us informed.

[tony969]

Yes it is quite a history. The new drug eluted stent was placed on the top of the other top- I was told that is bigger than those two and now it covers them completely. Yes, I do take Simvastatin, Plavix, Aspirin/325 mg/, Lisinopril and Carvedilol. I do take fish oil as well, Qo-Q 10, Vitamina D-3, etc...The problem is that the doctors could not discover the etiology of the pain. Next week I have a stress test as well as CT scan of the chest. If you don't mind, will keep you posted. And thank you very much for your response.

[Flycaster305]

I quit taking the Q drug, I'm not sure it reacts well with statins.  I've ended up with eight stents, and when taking Q drug my CAD was the most active.  Also, the research praising the Q drug seems to come from those folks marketing it, and there seems to be no conclusive evidence that it helps.  Others will disagree.  Those of us in the NW need the D drugs!  Have you been tested for your vitamin D level?  

I'm still puzzled by what you mean by the new drug eluting stent is placed on top of the other stents, I didn't think that was possible.  I'm of the opinion that once a stent is in place in an artery, it is immovable.

Best wishes.

[ed34]

The drug eluting stent would be 'longer' than the other two and slipped inside the old ones and expanded, covering them from the inside. This is the important area to be covered anyway, not the outside because its the blood flow which needs protection. Unless you remove the other two stents, it would be impossible to put the new one over the top because they are squashed tightly into the artery lining.
Is it possible they have missed a smaller blockage anywhere?

[skydnsr]

Like Flycaster, I'm wondering about the tenderness to touch.  That doesn't sound like a symptom of coronary artery disease.  Maybe there is something else going on -- costochondritis, pleuritis, traumatic injury -- something noncardiac, maybe?   Maybe even neuromuscular pain from the statin?  It sounds like the docs are being pretty exhaustive on the CAD, but I wonder if there is something else going on, in addition to CAD, that is respoonsible for a big part of your discomfort.

[tony969]

I was assured this time they did not miss anything. A lot of people are wondering what is going on since I was assured that after the stent is placed I should not feel any pain. Thank you for you comment.

[tony969]

I thought about the same too and even suggested it to the doctors. No response from them so far. Before the heart attack though I did not have any pain- everything happened after the stent procedure/s/. This Tuesday I will have my stress test done following up later  at CT scan of the chest. Hopefully it will give me some answer...I will keep you guys posted since I really appreciate all of your comments. In about 2-3 months a nuclear stress test will be ordered. In the meantime I continue to take my walks and play ping-pong...it doesn't give me chest discomfort...the pain is actually the same. Thanks again

[skydnsr]

Sorry for the situation.  As for the doctors saying they did not miss anything, well, I wouldn't expect them to say otherwise.  That response simply has no information value in it.  It doesn't tell you anything more than you knew before they said that.  What are they going to say?  "Yeah, we did a pretty sketchy exam, so I'm sure you could have something else going on, but we're just not curious about what it is."  They are not going to say that.  

Sorry for my cynicism, but obviously something else is going on, or you wouldn't be still hurting.  Unfortunately, I've been through multiple situations where I had a physical problem, and the doctors acted like I must be imagining it, and it eventually turned out that there was something they had missed.  I even joke about it now, that there's no way I can have anything that's simple and obvious.

Well, one of two things will happen.  Either the pain will get better, and you won't need to worry about figuring out what it is.  Or it will stay with you, and under those circumstances, there is a good chance that someone will eventually diagnose it, because it will still be there.  I would keep complaining about it to every doctor that I saw, just so they don't get to forget about it.

Good luck.

[joanincarolina]

How did you do with stress and CT scan? I've been watching your posts and responses and have my own comments after you post about your testing results.Concerned. Joan.

[tony969]

Thank you very much for the posting. I got the results from the stress test and CT scan. The stress test was the regular one- checking for ischemic disease and everything was good there- I did it for 10 minutes. The doctor also assured me that there is no micro vascular disease- otherwise will show it on the test. The CT scan result indicated:  FINDINGS: No hilar or mediastinal lymphadenopathy or pleural effusion
or pericardial effusion or axillary adenopathy. Unremarkable
adrenals. Scarring involving the upper pole left kidney
redemonstrated (limited visualization of the kidneys on this scan of
the chest).

No infiltrate or pulmonary nodule.
Impression
IMPRESSION: No adenopathy, no infiltrate or pulmonary nodule or
pleural effusion.

Back in 1995 I was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Went through a vigorous course of radiation and since then I am cancer free. For my big surprise the doctor mentioned that the radiation could’ve caused my MI since everything else seems to be very normal. I started looking some information on the Internet and sure enough- the radiation for Hodgkin’s could cause indeed heart attack after even so many years. It is kind of sad though nobody even mentioned this to me in the past. Now my goal is to find out how/if possible/ to get rid of the “scaring” which indeed caused my artery to get sticky. In the meantime the pain continues. I am really happy though that found so many and so knowledgeable people who know so much about the disease- let’s keep digging, exchange opinions and hopefully find the “cure”.

[skydnsr]

Maybe if you could find a heart doctor who has a particular interest in the after-effects of thoracic radiation, he or she might have some ideas.  Maybe it is just scar tissue that is causing the pain and tenderness.  I think you have the right idea when you say, let's keep digging and exhange ideas.  I have had some things wrong with me that required me to be a detective on my own behalf.  It's like you are living out a real-life mystery story, and every once in a while you get a clue, and over the years, you slowly put the clues together.

[tony969]

You are absolutely right. I will be looking for one or talk with my cardiologist/ I consider him pretty smart but too sceptical, unfortunately/. I don't think the medicine is capable of treating scarring that occurs after radiation but you never know- one day that could be possible too. Last night I saw on the news a miracle drug- a guy from Redmond, WA had stage 3 lung cancer that started spreading- he was diagnosed 4-5 months ago and was dying. He found a clinical trial for an experimental drug in Colorado, I believe....to make the story short- taking 2 pills a day/ 12 hours apart/ today he is TOTALLY CANCER FREE.  They expect to continue the studies and it make take couple of years before the drug is available but the results are extremely promising. Any other ideas will be greatly appreciated. Thank you again

[skydnsr]

Sometimes things heal on their own in ways that the doctors don't expect, too.  I've had that happen more than once.  

And sometimes just very conventional, simple treatment is more effective than anyone expects.  I have a friend who has had ovarian cancer for about 27 years, and it has been managed surgically.  Whenever she has gotten a new tumor, she has just had it cut out.  She has never had to have chemo, and she just had her first and only course of radiation about two years ago.  She has worked all this time and had a normal life and has had good quality of life except when she happened to be having surgery.  That's not "supposed to" happen with ovarian cancer.  When she was diagnosed, the original tumor had ruptured inside her pelvis, and I believe she was given a 10% chance of surviving five years.  She went against medical advice and did not have radiation then.  She decided to do the types of treatment that would damage her the least, and that strategy has worked out very well for her.  She did not say that she would never do chemo or radiation; she just said she would not do them until she had to.  She has always required the doctors to explain their opinions to her satisfaction, and then she makes her own decisions.

[tony969]

If I was thinking the same way 15 years ago, I would have probably done the same. At that time though I was young, shocked and in denial. Could not accept that this happened to me. Later on I started doing a lot of research and found out all the information I needed. By the way: have you read the book "NATURAL CURES THEY DON'T WANT YOU TO KNOW ABOUT" by Kevin Treadau? Highly recommend it- there is some staff that is extreme but gives you a very good prospective how you should approach and take care of your health.

[skydnsr]

I have not read that particular book, but I will look at it, thanks.  

[tony969]

Last night I started feeling chest pain, shortness of breath and went to the urgent care. The pain was moving to my arms, back/especially left arm/ and the doctors did blood test and x-ray. It's been only 2 months since they placed the DES Xience 5 inside the 2 bare metal stents but discomfort has been there all the time. The blood test results for troponin levels were normal as well as blood cloth. I am expecting one more test today for thyroid. The only ubnormal thing was elevated heart rate- the doctors did not know why it is happening. After 5 hours I was discharched and this morning I still feel the same discomfort. It has been extremely frustrating expirience with those stents- sometimes I wish I had a minimally invasive bypass/since one artery only was clogged/ and wold've probably feel better. Did anyone expirience something similar? Thank you for your reply

[joanincarolina]

I've been watching your posts and am sorry about your episode last night and sorry more that you don't have an answer.I'd like to offer a possible thought and although this occurs more frequently in women then in men, it does show in men.Ask your physician about involvement in your tiny heart microvessels. These can be clogged, narrowed, not open correctly and give angina-like symptoms with exertion and with rest. Treatments can include a calcium channel blocker and long lasting nitrates.EKGs will not always show that you're even in pain, heart enyzmes would be negative  and having a cath can't look at these very small vessels. Medical papers address this post angioplasty/stenting occurrence. Let me know. Read my journal here at 'joanincarolina'. I'll answer questions.Joan.

[tony969]

Thank you very much for your answer. I had a stress test a few weeks ago and I particularly asked the doctor about any microvascular disease- he stated that this test would have given him some indication about it and he does not think I have this one...Like I said it is really frustrating since all the problems started after the stents have been placed in.

[skydnsr]

If only you could identify a cardiologist in your area who is aware of the possibility that Joan mentions -- or just one who is willing to go to any lengths to identify the problem, whatever it is.

[joanincarolina]

Ok, allow me to belabor this point. My early stress tests I passed ..on paper.. other times I fell off the treadmill gasping for breath with chest tightness and nothing showed on paper.It's difficult to get pass the technology and have the docs listen to your symptoms.Have they offered nitrates for you?
You do have a complicated history with all the possibilities involved with the stents but you sound to me to be having variant angina.If we know it's not from your stented larger coronaries( that would show on ekg, stress test) but the next unknown is your smaller vessels trying to pump through blood to your heart muscle and back out to circulation.When these vessels start closing or not opening enough they cause ischemia which causes pain.Remember that normal cardiac demand is happening and changing even when we sit.Our organs are placing varying demands on the heart.How are you at night? When you sleep? I know your mind is filled with doubts and questions which may keep you awake.And many doctors do not know about the impact of the microvessel on the heart circulation and in general research is still going on.Let me know.Joan.

[joanincarolina]

I just picked up on skydnser's post. She's right. Are you near any center of excellence in Cardiology or a group that is affiliated with Cleveland,Mayo, etc? These are the research centers that know about this MVD.Also, there is no test to ID MVD unless you have a cath by provocative testing and meds and then it's a diagnosis of exclusion.The end result would be the same.Treat the symptoms.Joan.

[tony969]

Thank you very much. You are all very helpful. There was I time after the first stents were placed that I took Osissorbide/ not sure about the spelling/ but It is a all day Nitro/ versus the small amount I use when I have a chest pain/. Did not make any difference. Within 3 months the stents were occluded and as I mentioned- I had sharp pain in my back which moved to my armpit next morning. My cardiac enzymes were elevated and that's how they found the stents were occluded 99%/ after performing the angiogram/. Now the pain continues- I am willing to explore every option and am thankful for your suggestions. Unfortunately I live in Seattle and my insurance company is Group Health- the cardiologist seems to know about microvascular disease but does not think this is the case. I just stopped the stating I was taking/3 days ago/ to make sure that it is not the source of the pain. The doctor stated I can do this for a month and see how I feel....The other option: maybe my body does not tolerate any foreign bodies, particularly those stents- who knows? Well, the more suggestions and information- the better. Hopefully will discover the source of the pain.

[skydnsr]

Tony, what is it about the insurance?  Does Group Health not let you change doctors?

[tony969]

They do but it is within their insurance company which is Group Health. The choice is not very big and they seem to think alike.

[skydnsr]

Okay, I get it.  

[joanincarolina]

The long acting nitrate you refer to is isorbide- Imdur,Ranexa;none of those worked for me, only nitro does.Do you take nitro for these episodes? And what is the result? Be sure you are using fresh nitro tabs, they break down fast and become ineffective and the nitro spray has an expire date. Have you posted this out on the Heart Expert forum to see if we can get some input from the cardilogists? Still thinking Joan.

[skydnsr]

Well, and I'm still thinking too, Tony, about how you can get some help from some MD somewhere -- hard as that help may be to come by.  Do you have a good PCP that you like as a doctor?  

[tony969]

Yes, I do like my PCP but he is not a cardiologist. He's been trying to be really helpful.

[tony969]

No, I don't take nitro because it doesn't help me. Since I am pretty new to this forum/s/ how do you post your questions so they can be seen by a cardiologist? Thank you for your help

[skydnsr]

Click on Forums at the top of this page.  You will then see a page with two sets of forums, Medical Support Communities on the left and Ask a Doctor on the right.  Click on the Heart Disease forum under Ask a Doctor.

[tony969]

Are there any fees involved for asking a doctor?

[joanincarolina]

No fees. Don't be discouraged it it takes a couple of trys.These are good docs who do this along with there regualr day jobs. They are very helpful.Joan.

[tony969]

Thank you for the note. At night I take sleeping pills and do not feel very much pain. It is not a severe pain but it is a pain. In the ER- they did not give me anything- just took the blood test, X-rays and that was it. I have talked to my doctor about spasms of the artery- he doesn't seem to understand or believe this even though I srtongly consider this as an option. Anywas, I E-mailed him today and tomorrow we will see his response- the sad part is that he doesn't think it is anything cardiac, which another doctor said the same before the restenosis occurred. Thank you again and have  a good evening

[tony969]

By the way- in order to ask a doctor a question, it cost $20.00. At least that;s what is says...

[skydnsr]

Tony, I think you just reposted your original question in this same forum.  It doesn't look like you have made it into the expert (Ask a Doctor) forum yet.  Again, click on Forums at the top of this page, then click on Heart Disease on the set of forums on the right, where it says Ask a Doctor at the top of all the different forums.

[KindredSpirit1221]

I am in a similar situation. I experienced 3 bouts of pain prior to having a stent and now am in constant pain.  I had a stress test and all looked good.

There are a number of reports related to pain after stent implantation on the Internet.  I was NOT told about it as part of the INFORMED CONSENT prior to agreeing to have this procedure.  I believe a good lawyer may help to expedite attention to this problem and am looking for class actions on this issue.

I would like to see a Blog devoted to this problem essentially warning people about the potential of severe pain after implantation side affect of stents. Balloon angioplasty may be the procedure of choice for some individuals.  It is a less expensive procedure.  On the down side it DOES have a substantially higher incidence of restenosis.  In hindsight, I so wish I had insisted on balloon angioplasty and resisted the coercion of my cardiologist.  I understand that cardiologists must make the case for using the stent by providing the associated statistics.  However, I believe the choice between balloon angioplasty and stent implantation should be left up to the patient without undo coercion from a cardiologist for the use of stent.

It is important for patients facing this problem to know the effect of stents in terms of attracting plaque as a stent does not provide the smooth, pliable surface of the natural artery.  In fact, the spring of the stent provides a very uneven, corrugated surface. Patients need to know how this stiff piece of stainless steel tubing lined with a spring affects blood flow. Yes, it temporarily opens the artery, but what about its corrugated-like surface exacerbating plaque buildup over the long run?  

What if a person is highly sensitive to having a foreign body placed in their heart for religious or philosophical creed concerns?  Religious concerns play a heavy roll in the efficacy of treatment.  All of these issues should be weighed and given credence prior to the procedure as it cannot be reversed. There is no buyer's remorse here.

If a Blog were initiated, I would like to see it focus on solutions related to finding and treating the cause of this pain-after-stent implantation while providing legal insight for expediting the aforementioned.  

[tony969]

Thank you very much for the post. If a blog is initiated, I will be more than happy to participate. In the meantime, let us keep surching...I am sure we will find the roots of this.

[UKNeil]

How are the chest pains now Tony,

Have the experts managed to give you a reason for them? and more than that fix the problem.

I have been getting similar pain after a couple of stents were put in me November 2010.  Cant take statins they absolutley do not agree with me tried all kinds! but am taking Clopidogrel, Aspirin,  Bisoprolol Fumerate, Bezafibrate and Ezetrol.

My chest pain is not too bad but when you have had 2 heart attacks (minor) and an invasive treatment like stents you tend to focus a bit!

I have not been to the doctor about the chest pain but looking at all the info here it sounds like it would be not too much point anyway!

[ed34]

When angioplasty procedures are performed, a coronary artery can go into spasm. The tickling sensation of the catheter touching the artery lining can trigger this to start occurring. Spasms can occur at any time of the day and don't necessarily need anything to start them off, and are very often overlooked by Doctors as a possibility. Nitro spray works against them with 'some' people, but not everyone. One very successful way to stop them, is to take calcium channel blockers. Calcium is absorbed through the artery lining, through tiny channels, which give energy to the muscular layer in the artery wall. CCB prevent a lot of the calcium entering those channels, so the artery has far less energy, and prevents the spasm. I took them for just a few weeks, and after stopping them the spasms had vanished.
Spasms can constrict arteries anywhere between 5% and virtually a total occlusion, so the variation between patients is a huge range. This means some people could possibly find spasms fatal, while the other end of the spectrum is no symptoms at all. The symptoms for most sufferers is angina, but not all show EKG problems or indeed on an echo scan. Symptoms seem to be the only indication in many cases. I had never had spasms before, and had 5 or 6 angiograms/angioplasty procedures between 2007-2009 none of which caused any problems. However, in late 2009, a very intensive angioplasty procedure on my LAD, 5 long stents, laser and rotablation, caused my LAD to go nuts.
So perhaps this could be an option to consider.
For information only :-
I took Diltiazem 30mg x3 a day. You cannot drink alcohol or have grapefruit/grapefruit juice with this medication.

[tony969]

This is a little update. The chest pains continues and the "expert" can not find anything. I have gone to several specialist with no success so far. Currently taking Plavix, Aspirin, Simvastatin, Carvedilol/Coreg/, LIsinopril. Stopped the stating for a week but this did not help. Read that sometimes Lisinopril can cause chest pains and pain in between the shoulder blades/I have one too/, so the cardiologist and I mutually agreed that I will stop taking it for a week and see the results. In the meantime will monitor my blood pressure 3 times a day. Also I have read that ARB's provide much better results than ACE inhibitors and with less side effects. Does anyone have expirience with the "best" blood pressure medication with less side effects? Thank you for your replies.  By the way- ed34- have read that calcium channel blockers are VERY DANGEROUS MEDICATIONS.... It is not my opinion- that's what most of medical web sides state.

[ed34]

Can you please point me to a site or 2 that say "VERY DANGEROUS MEDICATIONS"?
These meds have been around for 40 years. I look forward to your resources.

[tony969]

Here are some web sites and pieces of different articles. You can click on the web sites for more information- the other are just small pieces since the articles are too big. I can send you thousands of them but this will give you the idea. Thank you

http://www.drheise.com/calciumchannelblocker.htm

Risks
•  CCBs may interact with other drugs and cause them to be less effective, and may even cause severe reactions in patients. High doses of one of the more common calcium channel blockers called nifedipine can be extremely dangerous, and the American Heart Association recommends that doctors use it cautiously and in low doses, if at all. Side effects such as heartburn, swelling in the extremities and exhaustion have been reported by some users. Rare side effects are more serious---some, like erratic heartbeat and increased chest pain, can be very alarming and quite dangerous.

Read more: Benefits & Risks of Calcium Channel Blockers | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/about_5491707_benefits-risks-calcium-channel-blockers.html#ixzz1EW6rpJCD

On November 9, 1995 Public Citizen's Health Research Group petitioned the FDA to put warning labels on all calcium channel blocker drugs because of the rapidly mounting evidence that a variety of these drugs, used for different medical purposes, including the treatment of hypertension and angina, actually increase rather than decrease the risk of death. The majority of studies including randomized controlled trials and other epidemiological studies either fail to show any clinical benefit, and in many cases actually showed harm to patients using calcium channel blockers.
Our proposed boxed warning label (with a similar one to be required as a patient package insert) is as follows:
Emerging evidence shows a consistent association between the use of the immediate release dosage forms of calcium channel blocking drugs and an increased risk of adverse cardiovascular events including myocardial infarction and death. The evidence to date most strongly implicates the immediate release dosage form of nifedipine in moderate or high doses, but there is no evidence that extended release dosage forms are safer as far as patient mortality is concerned. The three calcium channel blocker sub-types are chemically dissimilar, but they share mechanisms of action. Consequently, it is prudent to consider that this warning should apply to all calcium channel blocking drugs, regardless of chemical class or dosage form (immediate or extended release).
The calcium channel blocking drugs should not be used in those patients with recent myocardial infarction and congestive heart failure.
Drugs from alternative classes of agents for the initial treatment of stable or unstable angina pectoris or hypertension, diuretics and beta-blockers, have reduced major cardiovascular events and mortality in well controlled trials in hypertensive patients. Other agents, including the calcium channel blockers, have not been shown to reduce the incidence of stroke, myocardial infarction or death. Consequently, the Fifth Report of the Joint National Committee on Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure recommends diuretics and beta-blockers as the preferred drugs for treating hypertension.

http://www.totalhealthsecrets.com/ENGLISH/resources/articleDetail.php?articles_id=69

[erijon]

I take Benicar CHT 40/12.5 mg which is a angiotensin II receptor antagonist (ARB) with a diuretic. I have been on this for years and it works great and NO side effects. If you look at my blood pressure tracker you can see the results, it keeps me at an average of 110/69 which is down from 135/85 when I started about 6 years ago.

No complaints here except it is expensive as there is no generic and I'm constantly fighting my insurance carrier to pay their share, h=they would like me on something cheaper like Lisinopril which I refused.

Hope this helps, let me know if I can give you any further infor.

Jon

[ed34]

From what I've read, the main concern seems to be nifedipine, which is not diltiazem. In fact a trial run by the AHA, found there were fewer side effects with diltiazem and it was issued in higher dosages than nifedipine. The reference to the FDA receiving public petitions to remove drugs from the market is really neither here or there. You won't believe how many petitions they get, and they all stem from scare mongery web sites led by so called caring Doctors. They want you to subscribe to their treatments of course, such as the fantastic chelation which does nothing for CAD. There have been attempts with petitions to remove various statins from the market, but in their research the FDA found no scientific backing for the claims made. All medications will affect some people in the wrong way, that's life which is why they all carry leaflets with the warnings. I think you should look at the side effects with some other medication, such as beta blockers, the list is much longer than diltiazem. As an example, look at bisoprolol. My statins (lipitor) have some nasty effect to some people but after 4 years I've had no trouble at all from them. Here is an interesting comment from the first web site you listed, which explains it all really....
"I now believe God has plans for me to share this message and offer hope to others who have severe health problems."

I wonder if God really told him to get rich exploiting others and scaring them off their meds. It makes you wonder if Jesus charged for his sermon on the mount.
If Nitro doesn't cure a spasm, which can be fatal by the way, then the only real remaining hope is CCB. Unless they fancy a chat with DrHeise instead who will charge them to use his nutritional supplements to no avail.

[tony969]

Thank you very much. I will discuss this with my cardiologist. After I stopped Lisinipril/this is my second day/ my blood pressure went up but I can breath better and do not have this nauseated feeling. Can you take it without a diuretic? Is it still beneficial? And which one of the ARB's from your expirience has better results with less side effects? Thank you again for your help

[erijon]

Benicar HCT is an ARB with a diuretic in it. It is really great stuff, it allows your arteries to relax and absorb the force of each heart beat. I have been very happy with it.

[tony969]

As I posted in the beginning I had a heart attack on 09/21/09. After my bare metal stents were clogged and I almost got another heart attack, a DES was placed inside those two. Since then I have been having chest pains. I am currently on Plavix, Aspirin, Simvastatin, Lisinopril and Carvedilol/Coreg/. Stopped Lisinopril 3 days ago and feeling much better- unfortunately my blood pressure went a little up. From your expirience: looking for BP medications with good proven record and less side effects? Statins and Plavix do not give me any trouble so far. Any opinion and advise will be greatly appreciated. Thank you

[ed34]

"Since then I have been having chest pains"

I would think there is another blockage somewhere causing the problem. I would seek a second opinion if they don't seem interested.

[tony969]

No, they did angiogram back in April since I was complaining about it and did not find anything. The stent was wide opened and I was assured there are no other blockages. Everything started when the stents were placed- no chest pain prior to this.

[ed34]

Have you considered refractory angina?

[tony969]

Yes I have, but the cardiologist assured me there is nothing to do with this. My major concern now is to find a blood pressure medication/considering the heart attack I had/ with less side effects such as dizziness and nausea. I am not sure the beta blockers are so good/too many side effects/ but there is nothing else I suppose...just keep digging. Will appreciate if you give me your opinion. Thanks

[getthestentsout]

Just came across this thread - and I'm right here with you Tony and Kindred Spirit.  I'm coming up on my one year anniversary of mild MI and placement of 3 stents last May.  Since then, I've changed many of my behavior patterns (for the better) but I've never felt worse.  I had a severe arhythmia in Feb, palpitations all the time, wake up at night with a jolt and can feel my heart pumping hard, & irregularly.  The doctors say, 'hmm, don't know what that is' and push another med at me.  So now I've stopped the miserable plavix, no more statins, tried but quit the beta blockers too.  Hate it all, it didn't help my symptoms, I feel better off them.  But, I'm in constant fear of restenosis, or thrombosis so I do take xanex for the anxiety.  These palps are not the anxiety - they are far too dramatic.  And Kindred, I'd be interested in whatever class action suit you find or start.  I also did not give INFORMED consent.  I wasn't told about the need for plavix, I wasn't told about the possibility of bypass - the option was pushed on me like a fast car sales, while I was coming off the anesthisia from the cath, laying flat and extremely shaken it all.  (oh, and this was all 5 days after the MI cause I'd gone home from the hospital ama, was feeling absolutely fine but was called all the days later b/c my follow bloodwork showed small troponin and trace enzymes)  The guy who got a hold of me got a nice fat fee but never once called to find out if I'm still alive or dead.  So I continue to search for a doctor.  And a lawyer.  

[j2iron]

Hello Tony: I have been reading about your ordeal and I can imagine how frustrated you must be.  Have you read the book by Caldwell Esselstyn entitled "Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease?"  Esselstyn is a cardioolgist at the Cleveland Clinic and advocates a plant diet to get rid of angina and stop and/or reverse heart disease.  I mention this because he states that fats and oils that are in the normal american diet can irritate and inflame the endothelium and cause just what you seem to be experiencing.  The diet is brutal but the claimed results are interesting.  If you are interested, follow-up your reading with "The China Study" by Campbell,  the documentation is superb and the conclusions irrefutable.  And the best part, you can take control of your heart problems.  Good luck...j2iron