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Ejection Fraction 12%
After a bout of angina it was discovered through echo that my EF was 12%. Absolutely everything else is normal (i.e. chest x-ray, telemetry, EKG's, cardiac cath (showed clear arteries) and stress test).
Symptomatically, I have some shortness of breath, hand/foot pain at times, lower calves are sometimes reddened and one bout of angina which lasted approximately 1-1.5 hours and was followed by some nausea and feeling of weakness on right side of body.
What should I expect medically from my cardiologist? I have not seen him as an outpatient yet and the plan now is to try Coreg.
What is causing the low EF? What is the prognosis?
I am a 40 year old female, non-smoker, diet controlled diabetic, borderline cholesterol and approximately 60lbs overweight.
Symptomatically, I have some shortness of breath, hand/foot pain at times, lower calves are sometimes reddened and one bout of angina which lasted approximately 1-1.5 hours and was followed by some nausea and feeling of weakness on right side of body.
What should I expect medically from my cardiologist? I have not seen him as an outpatient yet and the plan now is to try Coreg.
What is causing the low EF? What is the prognosis?
I am a 40 year old female, non-smoker, diet controlled diabetic, borderline cholesterol and approximately 60lbs overweight.
A lower than normal EF (29% or lower) is an indication the heart isn't pumping adequately. The EF is the percentage of blood pumped into circulation with each stroke.
Almost always the problem is due to heart muscle damage and the heart wall doesn't contract effectively, and that is medically referred to as hypokinesis, and that would/should have shown up with the echo!
Heart wall thickness can cause a low EF, but that would have shown up with an x-ray and an echo.
If the heart rate is very fast, this condition can a low cardiac output as well, but an EKG test would/should be abnormal. Coreg is a beta blocker/ACE inhibitor and slows the heart rate and dilates blood vessels.
The prog for a low EF depends on the underlying cause, according to your post all test were normal?but you are being treated with coreg?
Almost always the problem is due to heart muscle damage and the heart wall doesn't contract effectively, and that is medically referred to as hypokinesis, and that would/should have shown up with the echo!
Heart wall thickness can cause a low EF, but that would have shown up with an x-ray and an echo.
If the heart rate is very fast, this condition can a low cardiac output as well, but an EKG test would/should be abnormal. Coreg is a beta blocker/ACE inhibitor and slows the heart rate and dilates blood vessels.
The prog for a low EF depends on the underlying cause, according to your post all test were normal?but you are being treated with coreg?
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