How likely is it to have a normal cardiac workup and still have a electric problem?

[mrsboston3122]

I have been asking so many questions lately and I have one thing that is so bothering me and thought I would reach out to someone on here.

How likely would it be for someone to have a dangerous arrhythmia if they had a negative cardiac work up? In May of this year, I had a normal echo, normal stress test, normal event monitor besides PVCS and PACS and sometimes an elevated and lowered HR, BP ok and blood work ok too. In 2004 I had a normal EP study and I dont know if this test is still good this amount of years later. How likely would it be to have a dangerous arrhythmia after all that being normal?

I had a 24 hours holter monitor last week and got the results and it was completely normal according to my primary. It did show a couple elevated heart rates and the lowest was 43. There was 2 times my heart was 140 and I dont recall feeling it, once was while I was asleep. Do you think thats normal or should I take the results to my cardio? She said it was Sinus tach.

The reason I am asking this question is because I have been having pre-syncope episodes. I have had 4 where I thought I was going to pass out any minute, they come on fast and are gone within seconds. The feeling is like nothing I have ever felt before and is scary to say the least in fact other then PVCS it is the most terrifying thing I have ever experienced and it is more disturbing because I dont know why this is happening to me. I read that this feeling is mostly due to cardiac problems and that 20 to 30 percent of people that have this feeling and if its due to their heart die within the first year and that has me even worrying more.

I dont feel a fast heart when it happens but then again I dont recall feeling the one on the holter when it said my heart rate was 140 for a minute or 2 either.

I am going to be having a tilt table test but the only thing that concerns me is these feeling are not related to changing positions. The severe episodes I spoke of above happened while I was sitting. One time I had been sitting for about 20 minutes and the other was for a few minutes. Could it still be Vagal? I thought that happened from sitting to standing or something.

The only other thing I can really think of is that once when it was doing it for a while only a milder form, I mean I felt like I was going to pass out but it was not severe as the others. When I say down for my vital signs the guy put the ox meter on my finger and said my pulse was 30 and it read that for almost a minute before it changed to 78. That kind of freaked me out but thats not the number that was recorded and no one mentioned anything.

What do you think?

Thanks

[mrsboston3122]

And everyone else:) I went and seen the EP doctor who did my EP study and he is giving me a cardio net 14 day monitor that I dont have to push the button or call it in, it will record and send on its own:) Is that a good one? He is also setting me up to a TTT that my cardio has been promising for a month now. He says he does not think it to be serious in regards to my heart since I had a decent EP study in 2006, I thought it was 2004. I hope he is right. I hope its not my brain or my heart but we will find out.

Some of my symptoms match heart block but would they have seen that by now? Well the near fainting and the low heart rate because once when I was having an episode I went to the ER and my heart rate according to the ox meter was 30 but they said it was probably a mistake but they did not check it though and then it went to normal. that epsiode was a constant light headed feeling not the one that comes fast and hard and there were other times I checked my BP from my home machine and it read hight 30s or low 40s I thought it had to have been wrong. The holter I had 2 weeks ago recorded my lowest heart rate at 45. Maybe I am just reading to much trying to figure out what is wrong with me. I would like to think heart block would have showed up or does it come and go also?

[Mom2four85]

I am so sorry, I posted in your other thread but wanted to post here also.  

If I were you, I would push for echo's for both children.  Please do not let either of them do anything strenous until you get these appts done - if your son is like my youngest son who is also Autistic,  then he will not complain about anything and when he does I know he's really really sick.

do some reading on LVH - left ventricular hypertrophy, but don't fret too much over it until you get testing done - you may need to get a blood test done first for genetics, then they can do saliva tests on your children for different genetically predisposed things

I fully understand what you're going through and you need to take care of yourself.  It's a scarey ordeal, but hopefully you can find some answers soon.

[mrsboston3122]

My daughter had an EKG done today and it they just called to tell me it was abnormal, she is not allowed to do any kind of activites. My son had an EKG which showed LVH before they would start him on ADHD meds and so he was not allowed meds and has an apointment with the cardio for this month. My daughter they told me has the same thing LVH and something else but they did not tell me only restrictions and get an appointment with cardio asap. She has one for the 19th, the advised me if she has the episode again to take her to the ER and demand an EKG. My son has since told me that his heart does it to but he never said anything because he thought it was normal. I am a mess!

[mrsboston3122]

I have no father listed on my record just my mother, There were 3 dates set up for blood test and he showed up for neither of them. In 1982 I guess they did not force you to take the test.

I never met him, I kept calling his mothers house and she gave the messages to my  fathers middle daughter and she called me after he passed away. She told me she gave him the messages and he said he would call me but that I was not his child and he never called so when he passed she felt like she should notify me. This was in 2005. She tells me she believes that we could be sisters, because she remembers my mom and staying over and she remembers me as a baby. Shes about 10 years older then me. From what I understand he did not have much to do with his family, well thats what they tell me.

I spoke with her yesterday and she told me that he had no one listed as his next of kin.. The called his ex that he had listed on his work papers. They took his body somewhere unclaimed bodies go and my sister told me it took her hours to track him down. She said that she will do whatever she can to help. I am going to try and get the autopsy, but I will talk to a lawyer first.

[CrohnieToo]

Altho your father's last name was different than yours, was he listed as your father on your birth certificate or was there a court judgement establishing his paternity (or would that be your paternity??) If so I would think a copy of the document establishing your/his paternal relationship and a copy of his birth certificate establishing his father's name should get you what you need. You will have proven the line of descent w/legal documents to both your father and his father.

[mrsboston3122]

She had some PVCS, for the few minutes that she was on the monitor. She is going to her doctor at 10:20 this morning. I will see what he says but I am scared indeed. I will do the bar thing and see where that takes me.

[Mom2four85]

go to www. florida bar . org (make it a web address and take out the spaces) since you live here in fl and click find a lawyer - The Florida Bar provides this service.  For $25 you can consult with an attny for 30 min on just about any matter.  There's drop down boxes that ask what county, state etc and you may have to try a few times to get the right one.

You may need a general attny just to find out what branch of law deals with this type of thing. (google them if they don't have a website and you can email and say I have a quick question - outline simply your question and most are great about emailing you back or referral to someone who can help)

We used this service with a landlord/tenant dispute and the attny drew up papers during the consult and all we paid was $25.  Now, if it had gone beyond the simple form needed, I'm not sure how much they charge, but you can ask about that and negotiate with the attny you choose =)  certainly alot less than going other routes.

If NJ is like FL or AL; as I said previously - the DC will NOT have all of the info on it - just the suspected cause of death, that's why you have to get the autopsy report.  It sounds like they think your dad had a heart attack, also known as a myocardial infarction - which is even more important now you get his medical records but especially the autopsy report which will list each and every thing they found he had wrong.

When my oldest daughter was 6, playing outside she passed out in the back of her dad's truck playing hide & seek.  It really freaked us out and we took her to the ER they found back then she had what I think were pvc's and possible VT - the dr's told us it was nothing to worry about and she would grow out of it.  She's 24 and still has pvc's and has had them since; like me she gets sob and cp sometimes, but she hasn't fainted, she just gets that "woozy" feeling.

I would call your daughter's pediatrician get an appt and have her checked out - go through a full cardiac workup just to be sure and ease your mind to find any possible problems.  I don't think parent wants our children to suffer things we have, I don't want anyone at all ever to go through what I have =)

[mrsboston3122]

Thank you so much, I am freaking out I just got back from the ER with my daughter she is only 8, we were sitting and talking and she told me her heart was going fast it felt like a basket ball in there and that it hurt. It went away but kept doing it off and on and I could feel it in her chest too. I took her to the ER they did nothing and told me to follow up with her dr. WE just got home and its doing it again. I am so scared for her. She said it never happened before only one time last week but she did not tell me about it. I dont want my kids to go through what I am going through. Should I take her to another ER?

[yarrow]

I would simply suggest you phone the office of any attorney in your town, tell them over the phone that you have a heart problem that may be linked to the sudden deaths of your father and grandfather, but that the hospital that treated your father (in another state) will not release the records to you since you are not listed as next of kin.  So, your question would be, "Could you tell me what kind of attorney could help me?"

If you decide to meet with an attorney who is recommended, ask the fee for a consult.  It will probably be a couple of hundred bucks for an hour, depending on how pricey your town is.

Don't be afraid.  Just tell the lawyer that you don't have much money, but your health is at stake.

[mrsboston3122]

What kind of lawyer do I seek? I dont know that I could afford thousands of dollars but I do need the information. My sister said that the death report came out before the autopsy was finished. She said they told her she needed to go through surrogate court for the autopsy and that she was but they told her she needed to assume his debt so she backed out.. I am so confused with all thats going on and very afraid.

[yarrow]

It says that the coroner didn't care enough to get right in there with deep dissection, but that there was enough evidence of a 'myocardial infarction' to satisfy him that a 'heart attack' of some kind was involved.

That's relevant to your case when you see a doc.  Personally, I would still pay the bucks to ask an attorney about forcing the hospital to open their records to you, for medically significant reasons.

This approach does require a straight-ahead attitude, without waffling.

[mrsboston3122]

Well my sister just informed me she has the copy of death cert and it says cause of death unknown suspected MI. Does that mean they dont know why he died?

[Mom2four85]

I didn't have my father's last name either, heck my mother told me he wasn't my dad forever but he said he was;  then she changed her story - she died a long time ago at age 52 or she might change her story again now he's gone :P that's just how she was.  

I went to the vital stats dept; sent in a request; (it looks like NJ you may be able to do it online through their 3rd party program; but I didn't go all the way through the process) they are the ones who told me something about other health issues would only be listed on the autopsy report - i.e. my dad had lymphoma for 4 years, so that is listed on his dc as the cause of death, but for me to find out what specifically he had wrong with his heart - I had to get the autopsy report and medical records.  I guess i'll find out what AL does when I get the DC.

call them or request a copy for yourself - it's your right and they will do it even without the same last name - I'm sure they're used to dealing with all kinds of cases =)  it will help you alot if you get it

Also, if a dr tells you or makes you think that your dad/grandfather dying early with no known cause isn't important - find another dr - it could be heart related or a genetic disease that you will want to know about and be aware of for you, your children and grandchildren, and thanks =) I wish I had been closer to my dad - he seemed like a good man.

[yarrow]

Real simple to find out, mrsboston, but rely on yourself rather than your sister.  First, don't waste any more time with the hospital.

Second, just look at the NJ vital statistics website I posted up there, or call the toll-free number Yourself to find out what you need to do:

1-866-649-8726.

[mrsboston3122]

I also wanted to say that I am sorry to hear about your father.

[mrsboston3122]

I called the hospital where his autopsy was done and they told me I could not have it because I am not listed anywhere on any of things, we dont even have the same name and he is not on my birth record. I will keep pusing though to find out, my sister keeps telling me that she will help me but she never comes through.

I have told all my doctors but they never say anything and they dont ask me any questions about it. I feel its important information but they act like its not.

I know they found my father at work in the bathroom on the floor dead and my grandfather was home in bed he sneezed and died. I know that one sounds strange but its how it happened.

[Mom2four85]

My father died recently and I am in the process of getting his information.  I live in FL and he lived in AL.  I know each state is different and has different laws - I checked the AL Dept of Vital Records.

I had to send to the Dept of vital records for the death certificate, then I have to send to the hospital where he was when he died for the medical records and then I have send to the coroner's office for his county where he died for the autopsy report.

This is what AL vital records says:   By Alabama law, death certificates are confidential records with restricted access for 25 years from the date of death. Death certificates more than 25 years old may be obtained by anyone upon payment of the proper fee. Death certificates less than 25 years old may be obtained by the following persons, upon payment of the proper fee:

mother or father of person named on certificate
husband or wife of person named on certificate
son or daughter of person named on certificate
grandchildren of person named on certificate
sister or brother of person named on certificate
legal representative of family or estate
informant listed on death certificate as providing information

You should get your father's and grandfather's information; it is extremely important to get this info and know what's going on.   It's difficult being estranged I know - I didn't find my father until I was 14 and then didn't see him again until I was an adult.   It's difficult to go through, but be prepared if you do get the records if you find anything, take notes, write questions down and take it to your doctor for them to go over and see if they can find a connection =)

I know once I get all my dad's info I am going to be a basketcase, but I'll deal with it and move on; nothing else I can do except use the info I find as a valuable tool for my health.

[yarrow]

Your father's and grandfather's deaths at an early age are very significant pieces of your medical history.  In fact, the first time you see any doctor, that information should be about the second thing out of your mouth after you state your reason for making the appointment.  I hope you have told every doctor you have seen about this, for it belongs in your medical record.

As to getting your father's medical history or cause of death, in the US, death certificates are in the "public domain," and anyone, regardless of relationship to the deceased, can get that record from the registrar in the county where the death occurred.  There will be a fee, and it will be a hard copy (not available online), on which the cause of death will be listed by the coroner.  Here's the New Jersey site:

http://www.state.nj.us/health/vital/faq.shtml

As for the hospital records, those might indeed be closed if you were not listed as next of kin by your secretive father.  However, you have a valid medical reason for wanting them.  Personally, I would make an appointment with an attorney on this one.  The cost of a consult would be worth it.

[mrsboston3122]

I tried to get it but they wont let me because they said that I needed to be listed as his next of kin. I live in Florida and he was in NJ. My sister told me thats why she was unable to get it because she was not listed and they dont know who was since he was secertive. Any ideas on how I may be able to get it? Him and his father died just one years difference in age suddenly? I want to know why? There has to be something going on.

[Mom2four85]

MrsBoston; this might be painful sorry to be nosey but did you get a copy of your father's autopsy report?  If not, it may be beneficial for you to get it and give a copy to your dr - there are many types of familial conditions in the heart/ans spectrum.

Since your father died at such an early age with no cause there's no telling what it could be, but sometimes the first suspicion of a genetic cause starts there.  After they told me I may have ARVD, I started researching familial/genetic predispositions.

I understand about your job :(  it's stressful and very dangerous to drive if you're lightheaded/dizzy or fainting.  I had to cut my hours back to very few hours per week after my surgery and being on meds - I started fainting 5 or 6 days a week and could barely function, so I lost my health insurance.

I filed for SSDI, which went into review and I got it based on my medical records and doctor statements, but they denied me because I could take care of a checkbook and think for myself lol - the guy told me it was because we own a small business and they know "all the tricks" business owners pull to get SSDI ugh morons. I don't have insurance now since I'm not FT, in pain and having major health problems, no way I would do that, but I can understand what they're saying - I'm still waiting the haul wait of fighting my denials.

It's funny, I read back to my original posts where I joined here and I can't believe dr's didn't think anything was wrong with me and told me I had a "structurally" normal heart.  I still question why, what happened to me, what did some doctor miss, I've done everything a patient can do (I think) making lists, keeping a journal, took my meds and treatment like they said for over 10 months, yet I didn't get any better until I went off of all meds and their treatments (10,000mcg Sodium & water loading).

I think the thing I remember most is after my ablation I went in for my 2 wk checkup and asked about my MRI test results.  The dr said we don't have it, the hospital didn't have it - so she said we say in the medical field "If it quacks and walks like a duck, then we call it a duck" that just brought home my thoughts about dr's being "quacks" and I started my search for a new cardiologist :P

Dr's make mistakes, miss things, brush things under the rug and just simply ignore other things - they're human and fallible - so keep on searching if you think something is wrong with you - you're the one who knows your body best =)

[CrohnieToo]

I failed to mention, for what it is worth, that I've not had any dizzy or fainting or lightheaded feelings when going from sitting to standing, from laying down to sitting up, etc. - BUT - I have had several episodes of when I first lay down getting all lightheaded and w/a bit of a mild spinning sensation.

[CrohnieToo]

I just started on this arrhythmia junket back in March of this year and was just Dx'd w/A Fib in July of this year. I do have COPD so that isn't helping the situation at all and has most likely greatly contributed to the arrhythmias. Frankly, I think it was brought on by insufficiently treated OSA as sort of the last straw.

Whatever - what I started out to say is that I've had echocardiograms, cardiac stress test, stress echocardiogram, 3 types of nuclear stress tests .... nothing of any consequence ever showing. A very mild MVP Dx'd back in 1976 that they can only hear if I am laying down and eventually showing up in some cardiac imaging after 2000 still mild. It runs in my father's family and he was the youngest to die at 79 so I've never given it much thought. And it took the lowly echocardiogram to reveal mild pulmonary hypertension that doesn't show up on any of the "fancy" tests. We can thank the COPD for the PH.

It took a 30 day event monitor to detect my arrhythmias. They didn't/don't occur often enough to have caught them w/a 24 hour holter monitor. So much for the fancy, exotic, expensive tests. Not that a 30 day event monitor is cheap .....

And I make it a point to get a copy of ALL of my test imaging and results reports. I don't just leave it up to my doctors to "mention" any adverse results.

[mrsboston3122]

You know my medical problems have almost caused me to lose my job too, its hard to concentrate when all this stuff is going on.

Its funny because I was told my father fainted his whole life and no cause was ever determined and if it was he never told anyone. He died when he was 51 and his father at age 50 and no one knows why.. Its sad:( Maybe the lightheaded is from his side? I dont know but I wish I did,

[yarrow]

I know that vasovagal fainting exists in children.  It is not exactly rare.  I have also read that there are whole families that know, as far back as their family history goes, that they are 'fainters,'; some individuals in the clan are simply known for fainting all over the place--and for living long lives in spite of it.

I don't think I can answer your question about whether or not it comes on suddenly in youth.  My own experience was that it came on in my 30sand the tendency has gotten worse with time.  I can also say that anxiety or panic attacks (which I have) make it worse, in that when I take my full load of zoloft, the tendency simply goes away after about three weeks, as long as I am on the drug.