help please

[skram]

I have just received a letter from cardiologist stating that there is reduced wall motion and thickening in the mid and basal anterolateral, lateral and inferior walls. LV ejection fraction is 50%

can anyone explain what that means???

TYIA

[ed34]

yes it can have some side effects such as those for some people. It's a calcium channel blocker and so it affects the function of smooth muscle tissue found in both the heart and arteries. To constrict (to raise blood pressure), arteries take calcium from the blood through tiny channels in the artery wall. These medications restrict that ability. I am quite surprised that you are on these for blood pressure because I thought the preferred method was beta blockers and/or ace inhibitors. Calcium channel blockers are more often used to control artery spasms these days due to their side effects.

[afibsvtpatient]

I am 45 andi have been taking cardizem 240 mg cd for 2 months. I had an episode of double vision, flushing, heart racing took me a few min to get my bearings together...is that a known side effect for this drug?

[ed34]

Yes chemo can affect the heart muscle but usually it weakens it to give heart failure.

[skram]

blood pressure is generally within normal range.. I have a history of breast cancer and had chemo and rads..not sure if this would affect the heart muscle??
I'm 35 slightly over weight at 80 kilos
results are from a myocardial perfusion stress test..no signs of ischaemia.
I am awaiting an appointment for an echo in the next couple of weeks..just wanted some help understanding medical jargon :)

[ed34]

It basically means that the left side of the heart is thickening in the walls, making it stiff. The usual term for this is left ventricle hypertrophy. There are a number of possible causes, and it is possible there could even be two issues causing the problem. The usual cause for the thickening is high blood pressure. A double causality would be blood flow restriction in the coronary arteries causing the wall motion reduction, and high blood pressure causing the thickening. Do you have any idea what your blood pressure is on average?