left and right heart failure

[ally116]

i would appreciate honest and frank responses.SO, hubby became ill through an mrsa infection, prior to this he had good health.\the result of 8 weeks life support, 3 months intensive care a year ago is, congestive heart failure of the right, initially, and now also the left heart, also irregular heart,also double wire pacemaker fitted due to abcess removal on the heart involving naturaL PACEMAKER,1/2 function to each kidney, poor lung function due to double pneumonia,some fluid retention to lower lung,long term, neither increases nor decreases,grand mal epilepsy, due to stroke whilst on life support,replaceement aortic valve, small holes, less than 0.5mm, patching to the heart,congestive heart failure to the right heart, also left heart failure,low blood pressure, 58/90,swelling of the abdomen, also welling of the right leg and ankle,similar but reduced to the left,severe breathless on any exertion, ie standing and walking 10 feet,cannot wash, dress, without severe breathlessness, sits by the fire all day, or stays in bed,childs appetite, but still enjoys food, using food supplement drinks for 3 months,regular bouts of blue/purple lips and nostrils.thanks for your response.

[grendslori]

I'm so sorry for what you are all going through. When the doctors dismissed your husband for transplant, was it a transplant team that evaluated him and turned him down? If not, I would request to see a transplant team and at least talk to them. Multiple transplants have been done before and heart-lung transplants are certainly done. My daughter had decreased kidney function as well restrictive lung disease along with several other major health issues and they still went ahead with the transplant.  

[ally116]

hi, hes 57, and its not an option for him as the infection damaged his lungs and kidneys,and they said he was not a viable candidate.he has been back in hosptal for last2 weeks,admitted for dizzy spells which became a series of fits, (status) last friday, was horrendous, but hes still here and im hoping hell be back home next week,although he seems quite happy where he is, which is worrying and his memory has become apalling, hes having trouble recalling his childrens names, and cannot write.we trust in god, and take each day at a time,we cry a lot, and pray well all be ok.

[grendslori]

You have young children at home. I'm guessing your husband is young. Hasn't anyone talked about doing a heart transplant???

[ally116]

hi, im so sorry for your situation, i think that he really is tired as heart failure does make my hubby sleep all day on and off,a suggestion is to ring the secretary of the consultant who is treating your father to  make an appointment with them to talk about his condition in private, so you get to see them regularly.my dad was in hospital for nearly 3 months whilst they did tests, all they would say was that he was very ill, 2 weeks before he died we were told it was cancer and probs 3 months to live, we moved heaven and earth to get him moved home, he died12 days later at home, which what he wanted,my sister and i suspected cancer, from what we had read about his symptoms,weeks and weeks before they said.so i guess "very ill" means dying in hospital talk,it is immensely frustrating ,the not knowing, i dont know if hubby has years, months, should i try to take him on holiday, or will it make him worse, ??what should i tell our children, 13 and 6,we really pushed for answers in the end for my dad, and even tho they were uncomfortable,they were eventually honest, and it enabled us to give dad his last wishes, so i guess the answer is to maybe be a little more pushy for straight answers.hope u keep well, ally

[Bobbi6693]

I posted about my father yesterday, my name is Bobbie.  Today I went to the hospital to see him and they did stat blood work and said his urea nitrogen level was 90.  A normal range is 5-25.  His creatinine is 2.7 and I know it is high but the normal limits I can't think of right now.  So my question now is how high does the urea level have to get before they start dialysis and having this high of level (90) and the Congestive Heart Failure does this significantly increase his risk of death?  I never get straight answers from him, I am sure he is just trying to protect me and when I can track the Doctor down I do and he tells me all the truth but I haven't been able to get to him since Monday so I am hoping if I go up right after I drop my kids off at school I will finally catch him.
Soemthing also VERY unusaul for my dad is visiting, every other time he has been in the hospital he has always wanted people there constantly, but this time he says he doesn't want visitors or he says he is tired and wants to nap instead.  Is this something normal that people do when they know they are nearing the end?  i am sorry to go on and on but I have no one else to ask or get any help from so I am hoping someone out there has the answer.  Thank You

[Bobbi6693]

My father has had chf for years and  is now in the hospital with 10% ejection fraction.  I know he hasn't got forever to live, but does anyone know how long a person with that low of a number has?  I know we can't predict death, I just want an answer the doctors never give you a straight one.  

[ally116]

forgot to add, he takes 40mg furosemide twice daily, and 25mg spironalactone a day.

[ally116]

hi, yes 90/58,they did talk of cardiomyopathy when he was in intensive care,but not since that i recall,he lies a little more upright than he used to when sleeping,and does get up in the night a lot to urinate.also complains of thirst,was advised to suck ice cubes.He oddly enough does eat fruit regularly which he didnt before his illness,not as much as now, he has his own little fruit bowl next to him,he also uses fruit based replacement meal drinks.he takes diuretics,warfarin, and epilim for the fits, the rest are vitamins and anti depressants.the doctors are only saying sorry, but he has more damage to his heart from the infection than they originally thought,and to weigh daily,we have a return visit in 2 weeks, which believe me is amazing as waiting list can be months and months, which kind of worries me a little.\hubby seems to have taken all this in his stride, and is very different to before all of this,and his short term memory is poor,can you give me some idea of good questions to ask the dr when i see him, thanks, ally

[Encephalomalcia]

Do you mean blood pressure of 90/58?  The blue/purple lips and nostrils is serious.  Usually, this means that the ventricle is affected.  If his lips, nose, ears, hands, feet turn blue like a crayon color, it is an emergency situation.  The swelling in the abdomen is symptoms of left side heart failure along with congestion in the lungs.  The right side heart failure symptoms are the swelling in the ankles and legs.  Left side is more serious than right side heart failure.  Does he also have cardiomyopathy (disease of the heart muscle)?  The breathlessness is due to heart valve problems.  Does he have to sit up while sleeping at night?  What are the doctors saying at this point?  How strong is his heart pump?  It is good that he still has an appetite and is able to enjoy food.  When it gets toward the end of life, usually fruit is what is eaten and cannot eat any other food without getting sick to stomach.  Do you know how much of his heart is still working? Is he on ace inhibitors or beta blockers?