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For anyone with experience in cardiac/vascular issues...need advice please...
Sorry if this is long but I need to give some background info..I don't know if this is all related or not but I'm putting it all out there just in case.
OK so for years, as far back as I can remember, occasionally I get this achy feeling or pain in my chest around the heart area. By occasionally I mean may be once every several months. Even more rare I get this really sharp stabbing pain in the same area that makes me stop in my tracks and I can't even bend over til it's gone...but it only lasts a few seconds. Docs have blown it off or told me it was indigestion or heatrburn.
During my last pregnancy I developed a varicose vein in my right leg at the end of my 2nd trimester. It started in the front where my leg joins my hip and runs inward towards my crotch, around the inside of my leg and onto my rigth outter labia. Other than being very unsightly and mildly tender it didn't cause any problems and went away immediately after birth.
Now with this pregnancy it showed up around 13 weeks, same place. This time though it gets really tender and the whole right side of my pubic mound gets swollen, my leg tends to feel heavy and/or achy. I noticed several weeks ago I had a "dent" along one of the surface veins on my shin on the same leg. I showed my obgyn and he said it was a collapsed surface vein and the same one in my left leg is doing the same thing. He attributed it to whatever pressure is causing the vericose vein.
Now, wednesday night I didn't sleep well, kept waking up and EVERYTHING ached, every muscle, every joint. When I got up thursday morning I hurt so bad all over, I was having BH contx before I even got out of bed. I threw up pretty hard just one time that mornign but I was running a fever between 99 and 100.4 the whole day. I had also been feeling like I had to do #2 but never could do anything. At 130 I went to my ob. My BP was fine and my HR was normal (72 If I remember correctly). My cervix was closed, they monitored the contx and babys HR and baby was fine, in the 160's like normal, contx were mild so determined them as just BH even though they were moderately painful. He gave me an an antibiotic and told me to get some milk of magnesia and take it becuase it would help relax my uterus.
Around 5 I was feeling a bit better, contractions had almost all but gone..just one or two every now and then. I went ahead and took 2 tbsps of the Milk of Magnesia to a) help my uterus but mostly b) to see if it would help me go #2. Around 6:30 - 6:45 I started having these waves or intense pain in my upper back between my shoulder blades unlike anything I had ever felt. They would start of mild and build in intensity until it was around a 7 or 8 on the pain scale, it would stay that way for 30-45 seconds then fade out. A few minutes later another wave would come along. Sometimes I would feel the pain up into my neck and into my left shoulder and sometimes it would cause a pain/ache i my heart area along with a knot-feeling in my breastbone. I also had mild shortness of breath during them. Well my mom said it sounded like it could be the signs of heart trouble. DH and I opted to go have it checked out.
Since I'm 22 weeks they sent me to L & D who pretty well blew off everything I said. They checked my temp which at first was 98.8 but I had just drank some room temp water. They hooked me up to the contraction, heartrate monitor for the baby and did my heartrate and BP. When I first got there I was still getting a few waves of the pains. The first time they did my bp/hr my bp was elevated a little, not out of normal range, but higher than normal for me, my HR was 133 and babys hr was running high 170s to low 180's. The nurse waited a few minutes and took my temp again it was 99.1. She attributed the high heart rates to the temp. They monitored me for awhile then called my doc who said give me tylenol and send me home.
I got to thinking about this last night and I realized that my Temp was HIGHER when i went to my ob earlier that day and mine and babys heartrate and my bp were normal. But when i went to L & D and was having those pains, it was all higher, however, as the pains started going away while I was there, the heartrates and my bp went down and back to normal. That seems a little strange to me.
My question is...does this sound normal? Should I bring this up to my ob at my appt on the 19th? Maybe ask to have some tests done like an EKG or something to make sure there ISN'T a problem with my heart? I'm fine right now, but that really freaked me out.
Any advice or experiences would be greatly appreciated, again sorry this was so long.
OK so for years, as far back as I can remember, occasionally I get this achy feeling or pain in my chest around the heart area. By occasionally I mean may be once every several months. Even more rare I get this really sharp stabbing pain in the same area that makes me stop in my tracks and I can't even bend over til it's gone...but it only lasts a few seconds. Docs have blown it off or told me it was indigestion or heatrburn.
During my last pregnancy I developed a varicose vein in my right leg at the end of my 2nd trimester. It started in the front where my leg joins my hip and runs inward towards my crotch, around the inside of my leg and onto my rigth outter labia. Other than being very unsightly and mildly tender it didn't cause any problems and went away immediately after birth.
Now with this pregnancy it showed up around 13 weeks, same place. This time though it gets really tender and the whole right side of my pubic mound gets swollen, my leg tends to feel heavy and/or achy. I noticed several weeks ago I had a "dent" along one of the surface veins on my shin on the same leg. I showed my obgyn and he said it was a collapsed surface vein and the same one in my left leg is doing the same thing. He attributed it to whatever pressure is causing the vericose vein.
Now, wednesday night I didn't sleep well, kept waking up and EVERYTHING ached, every muscle, every joint. When I got up thursday morning I hurt so bad all over, I was having BH contx before I even got out of bed. I threw up pretty hard just one time that mornign but I was running a fever between 99 and 100.4 the whole day. I had also been feeling like I had to do #2 but never could do anything. At 130 I went to my ob. My BP was fine and my HR was normal (72 If I remember correctly). My cervix was closed, they monitored the contx and babys HR and baby was fine, in the 160's like normal, contx were mild so determined them as just BH even though they were moderately painful. He gave me an an antibiotic and told me to get some milk of magnesia and take it becuase it would help relax my uterus.
Around 5 I was feeling a bit better, contractions had almost all but gone..just one or two every now and then. I went ahead and took 2 tbsps of the Milk of Magnesia to a) help my uterus but mostly b) to see if it would help me go #2. Around 6:30 - 6:45 I started having these waves or intense pain in my upper back between my shoulder blades unlike anything I had ever felt. They would start of mild and build in intensity until it was around a 7 or 8 on the pain scale, it would stay that way for 30-45 seconds then fade out. A few minutes later another wave would come along. Sometimes I would feel the pain up into my neck and into my left shoulder and sometimes it would cause a pain/ache i my heart area along with a knot-feeling in my breastbone. I also had mild shortness of breath during them. Well my mom said it sounded like it could be the signs of heart trouble. DH and I opted to go have it checked out.
Since I'm 22 weeks they sent me to L & D who pretty well blew off everything I said. They checked my temp which at first was 98.8 but I had just drank some room temp water. They hooked me up to the contraction, heartrate monitor for the baby and did my heartrate and BP. When I first got there I was still getting a few waves of the pains. The first time they did my bp/hr my bp was elevated a little, not out of normal range, but higher than normal for me, my HR was 133 and babys hr was running high 170s to low 180's. The nurse waited a few minutes and took my temp again it was 99.1. She attributed the high heart rates to the temp. They monitored me for awhile then called my doc who said give me tylenol and send me home.
I got to thinking about this last night and I realized that my Temp was HIGHER when i went to my ob earlier that day and mine and babys heartrate and my bp were normal. But when i went to L & D and was having those pains, it was all higher, however, as the pains started going away while I was there, the heartrates and my bp went down and back to normal. That seems a little strange to me.
My question is...does this sound normal? Should I bring this up to my ob at my appt on the 19th? Maybe ask to have some tests done like an EKG or something to make sure there ISN'T a problem with my heart? I'm fine right now, but that really freaked me out.
Any advice or experiences would be greatly appreciated, again sorry this was so long.
Well I followed up with my ob this afternoon. I explained the chain of events since I'd seen him Thursday afternoon. I explained the original pains in my back and the ache/numbness in my left arm. He said that it sounds to him like a a compressed nerve in my back and the original pains were muscle spasms from that. So now I have another diagnosis or whatever you want to call it. I told him about how it took the hospital THREE tries to start an iv, blowing up one vein leaving a nice nasty bruise, then they didnt' even hook the stupid thing up to anything. He rolled his eyes like it didn't surprise him. Then I told him about the no eating or drinking and his jaw dropped and he was like "WHAT?" and said "I don't understand WHAT they do over there". He asked about what tests they did and how they came up with the whole kidney infection thing. So I told them that all I knew was that they drew blood twice, I peed in a cup and they did a very short ekg. The only test I know they SAID they were going to run was troponin. So he said he wanted to run a few more tests and get the test results from the hospital. So I had more blood drawn today and he said that hopefully by my appt on the 19th he will have everything back and we can make some sense out of this.
I did tell him I do still have some residual aching in the left side of my chest. For now the numbness is pretty much all but gone, my pinky and ring fingers on my left hand still have an extremely mild numb feel but it's really just a hint. I guess now I get to wait and see what he says at my next appt. I don't think he believes I have a kindey infection becuase my urine is clear and has been at every appt. He asked if they did a culture and I wasn't really sure what he meant by that so I said I didnt' think so. My temp was only slightly elevated on Thursday, none before or after that. it ranged between 99 and 100.2 on average. The highest it got was 100.4 very briefly.
Thank you for the information. I will definately keep it in mind in case any of these happens again.
I did tell him I do still have some residual aching in the left side of my chest. For now the numbness is pretty much all but gone, my pinky and ring fingers on my left hand still have an extremely mild numb feel but it's really just a hint. I guess now I get to wait and see what he says at my next appt. I don't think he believes I have a kindey infection becuase my urine is clear and has been at every appt. He asked if they did a culture and I wasn't really sure what he meant by that so I said I didnt' think so. My temp was only slightly elevated on Thursday, none before or after that. it ranged between 99 and 100.2 on average. The highest it got was 100.4 very briefly.
Thank you for the information. I will definately keep it in mind in case any of these happens again.
Wow - quite a history. Sorry about your 1st son...that is just tragic. A TTE is a Transthoracic echocardiogram. A PFO (Patent Foramen Ovale) is when a tiny hole in your heart never closes. We are all born with this hole, and it closes in about 80% of the population. The other 20%, it never closes. Now some people never become symptomatic with this "hole" (it's really more like a tiny valve). Symptoms may include, but not limited to weakness, numbness and tingling on 1 side of face and down arm; poss. chest pain, headaches and shortness of breath. A PFO can be repaired (after pregnancy). The best test is a TEE (transesophageal echocardiogram), but that involves sedation and is more invasive ~an ultrasound probe is inserted down your esophagus to see the chambers of the heart more clearly. Something to think about if your symptoms don't improve. I help the cardiologist perform these tests where I work. Also, the kidney infection you had can cause pain b/t the shoulder blades (can be severe) w/ n/v and a fever. That doesn't explain the numbness, but it definitely can explain the temp and pain in upper back (esp if the left kidney was affected). BTW, a CT of the head would only show a brain bleed, sinus problems or possibly a stroke. You would want an MRI of the Cspine to get to the root of your neck pain. BTW, MRI's are safer than CT scans b/c they do not produce radiation. It is safe for pregnant ladies if your neck pain doesn't improve. You may have pinched something along the way. Keep me posted.
I was only seen by the NP in the ER who consulted with the hospitalist. The hospitalist came to my room the next morning and said everything looked fine. The EKG they did was really short, probably not even a full minute long. Other than that they ran some blood work though I'm not sure exactly what. I know one test they mentioned was troponin.
What is a PFO? I don't think they checked for that.
In Aug 2001 after we lost our first son at 38 weeks due to a cord accidnet I ended up having elevated liver enzymes and some other wacky blood work that kept me in the hospital a few extra days. They did an ultrasound of all of my upper organs and did tell me that I had gallstones though at the time I had never had any issues with them. I know my mother had her gallbladder removed in her 30's becuase of a massive attack.
I haven't had any other tests done. But after she mentioned the muscular stuff and said it could be deriving from disk issues in the neck it made me thing. In February 2009 I fell down the basement stairs and hit my head on the block wall so hard it made me black out for a couple of seconds. The way I fell, when my head hit the wall it pushed my head forward sort of like if I work looking down towards my feet and for several days after I had really bad muscle pains along my spine. The ER did a CT scan of my head but that was it.
What is a PFO? I don't think they checked for that.
In Aug 2001 after we lost our first son at 38 weeks due to a cord accidnet I ended up having elevated liver enzymes and some other wacky blood work that kept me in the hospital a few extra days. They did an ultrasound of all of my upper organs and did tell me that I had gallstones though at the time I had never had any issues with them. I know my mother had her gallbladder removed in her 30's becuase of a massive attack.
I haven't had any other tests done. But after she mentioned the muscular stuff and said it could be deriving from disk issues in the neck it made me thing. In February 2009 I fell down the basement stairs and hit my head on the block wall so hard it made me black out for a couple of seconds. The way I fell, when my head hit the wall it pushed my head forward sort of like if I work looking down towards my feet and for several days after I had really bad muscle pains along my spine. The ER did a CT scan of my head but that was it.
Just a thought, but were you checked out by a Cardiologist or just the ER doc and Hospitalist (and the OBGYN)? As a nurse, I find that a Hospitalist may be fine, but their areas of expertise are very broad and not specialized. A Cardiologist may provide more answers for you. Have you been checked for a PFO? I saw that you were experiencing some numbness and tingling along with chest pressure. A TTE would be a good test for a pregnant woman b/c it doesn't involve drugs or invasive testing (it's a type of echocardiogram that uses aggitated saline to see if the heart has a possible defect or not). What about gallblader issues? Have they ruled out gallstones? have you had any ultrasounds done on your gallbladder? Even though you had pressure on your left side, this is still a possiblity with the pain b/t the shoulder blades. Have you had an MRI to rule out spinal stenosis in your neck/back? Just thinking out loud...
I posted the same thing on the 18-34 forum, if you read it, you can see what has transpired since last friday.
Not that I have been told - but I do notice a difference in this pregnany than my previous and I am on the shots. I find it that I often feel like I am having a panic attack and a lot of pain right below my chest. It feels like I am having contractions (all the other symptoms and feelings) without the abdominal contraction - they come and go and sometimes they can be extreamly painful - sometimes not. I was not sure if this was something others felt while on the shot - and for some reason I thought you were.... Please let me know how your appointment goes!
A lot of the women (and men) in my family have had heart problems. Everything from pulmonary embolism to massive heart attacks so I'd rather they think I'm overreacting than to not be checked. The hospital told me to follow up with my OB today so I'll make an appt an go in and just explain everything to him and see what he thinks about it.
I'm glad you got some answers. It's very frustrating to feel like the Dr's aren't taking you seriously enough. I'd go back if you feel like somethings not right though. We know our bodies best. My hubby had a pacemaker put in at 34. He had congestive heart failure and could barely breathe. He kept telling himself it was asthma and refused to see a Dr. I finally drove him to the ER. But, that's men for you.
Thanks for the reply. DH ended up taking me to the ER last night becuase even though the major pains came and went on Thursday, yesterday my left shoulder began to ache and my left arm down to my fingers started having mild numbness. Which was strange becuase it wouldn't go away. They did bloodwork and an ekg and said it all looked fine but put me in overnight until i could see the doctor this morning. The doctor swears it all has to do with a muscle in my neck and carpal tunnel. They did say my blood work showed a mild kidney infection which would explain the low fever the other day. I'm still not sure I'm 100% satisfied with what they said but I'm not a doctor, so who am I to argue with them. I'm just gonna take it easy for awhile and see what happens. They gave me vicodin to take for pain but I refuse to take it while pregnant so I guess tylenol is going to be my best friend.
Someone on another forum also suggested it may have been some type of panic attack. I don't know, I've never had one so I couldn't tell you. I do know the nurse who did my EKG said she recently had a pace maker put in (she is just about to turn 30). She said she had to go through 3 different doctors here before anyone took her serious. They kept telling her she was too young for heart problems and that she was just depressed. Like I said I'll wait and see what happens.
Someone on another forum also suggested it may have been some type of panic attack. I don't know, I've never had one so I couldn't tell you. I do know the nurse who did my EKG said she recently had a pace maker put in (she is just about to turn 30). She said she had to go through 3 different doctors here before anyone took her serious. They kept telling her she was too young for heart problems and that she was just depressed. Like I said I'll wait and see what happens.
Hi! I don't think the varicose veins are anything to worry about. If I remember correctly, you have a lot of children and the more you have, the more stress you are putting on your vascular system. My mother had 5 children, 8 pregnancies and she had the worst veins I ever saw in my life. They hurt all the time. She wore TED hose but that only helps so much.
As for your chest pain, that would worry me also. The other day I was having sharp pains on the left side of my chest. When I took a breath it felt like someone was stabbing me. I think I was just overdoing it though. I was at work and when I got home it stopped. Pain will definately cause your blood pressure and heart rate to go up, but I might ask for more tests considering all the others things that went along with the pain.
As for your chest pain, that would worry me also. The other day I was having sharp pains on the left side of my chest. When I took a breath it felt like someone was stabbing me. I think I was just overdoing it though. I was at work and when I got home it stopped. Pain will definately cause your blood pressure and heart rate to go up, but I might ask for more tests considering all the others things that went along with the pain.
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