PSA -Stay on Top of your Health

J

JSFM35X

Active member
I`ll keep this brief but its very important that I share this because it shocked my family this week. I`ll bet most of us know more about our vehicles LSP health than our own health.

Last Sunday my younger brother (48 yo) was at the gym and on the treadmill doing his usual 45 minute walk/run combo. Felt rather winded so got off early.

While changing clothes he felt like he had indigestion and went to CVS to get some antacids.

It got worse so he went to urgent care who sent to to the local Heart Hospital ER.

He was admitted Sunday Night and Monday after a Angiogram was scheduled for triple by pass open heart surgery.

His widow-maker artery was 90% blocked and the other two were significantly clogged. The Dr`s cannot believe the lack of symptoms.

There is a CT Calcium Score test that can be performed to check for this, it is a radiological non invasive test we should all get every few years.


My Brother was very lucks, Dr said he was Hours, days or weeks away from a catastrophic event. We have no recent family history but I`m getting this test.

He is home recovering and should be as good as new in 6-8 weeks,
 
I had a CT calcium score just a few months ago. Here is some background, I am 47 and a non smoker. I am a former collegiate athlete. I played soccer and did my fair share of running. My personnel best was a 5:08 mile. Many injuries later and I am over weight, but happy and pain free.

Decided to get a test since I work in Cardiology. My score was 120. Not the best numbers. Anything over 100 is considered abnormal. 120 is considered on the low to moderate side. Treatment is diet, statins and exercise. The only family History I have, is one uncle who had triple bypass. But he is also a smoker.

A Score of over 300 is very high to severe heart risk.

Test is simple and takes all of 10mins.

I paid out of pocket because it was cheaper than filling with my insurance and it cost me a total of $100.00
 
JSFM35X- So glad to hear your brother came through that OK and is going to be all right. Yikes, 48 is awfully young for that...

And thanks for reminding us that this whole Car Wax thing isn`t *really* on of Life`s Big Priorities, not even in the running compared to Health and Fitness.
 
Agree 100% with Accumulator on this. What a stark reminder. Very glad to hear it was caught in time! Thank you the post
 
JSFM35X- Did your brother display elevated Triglyceride/LDL numbers? I can understand people not generally getting the CT test, but would`ve expected *some kind* of red flag given the extent of his blockage...
 
Had physical in November. BP slightly elevated and Eco Cardiogram slightly irregular. Dr suggested he cone back in 2 weeks to double check. He went back in December and it was slightly off again. Not by much. ldl 215 no meds.

Dr made appointment to see cardiologist who saw him and scheduled a thallium stress test. He ended up having open heart surgery the day his stress test was scheduled for. Crazy. That test could have been tragic.

Get the CT calcium score everyone. It could save your life and your family a lot of grief.

Accumulator said:
JSFM35X- Did your brother display elevated Triglyceride/LDL numbers? I can understand people not generally getting the CT test, but would`ve expected *some kind* of red flag given the extent of his blockage...
Click to expand...
 
I’ll have a physical in March. I’m going to start asking the doctor what all these tests and their values mean.
 
Bill D said:
I’ll have a physical in March. I’m going to start asking the doctor what all these tests and their values mean.
Click to expand...

I`d do your own research first, you might find that you`re educating the Doc instead of the other way around ;)

And I`d do it before your bloodwork so *you* can tell *them* what to include.

And yeah, I`m serious. This stuff isn`t rocket science and/but a whole lot of General Practitioners, even good ones, just don`t know everything you might expect, at least not the most recently determined info. (I`d sure expect a *Cardiologist* to know, but I`d want a good knowledge base anyhow.)
 
Holy cow Jeff. I am praying for a speedy recovery for your brother.

Your definitely right about staying on top of it. My mom found out over the summer she had aortic stenosis and that eventually she was going to need a valve replacement. But wasn`t serious enough to warrant action. At least that`s what they thought

Unfortunately I think it was more serious as that was one of the contributing factors in her passing.
 
Yeah, Bill D was just telling me that they don`t fluoridate the water in his part of FLA, which was news to me.

(My wife and I are pretty fanatical about our Dental Health; I even do a light daily scaling along with all the brushing/flossing.)
 
I just picked up more floss yesterday. I’m even careful about what type of bottled water I drink. Apparently some are more acidic than others.
 
99.999% RO water for us.

Heh heh...

Accumulator: "Do my teeth show any signs of suffering from my significant citrus consumption?"

Dental Tech: "No, yours are no worse than *a normal person`s*".

No, she didn`t realize that she implied I`m abnormal :rolleyes: but hey, I figure I am...*in a good way* :D
 
PSA is the acronym for "Public Service Announcement" (How long did it take you to figure that out, Captain Obvious?!!)

Don`t laugh! I thought is was something to do with a Prostate-Specific Antigen when I saw it was a health topic!!!

I do like the comments about dental care. My wife works in a dental office as a customer service rep and scheduler. The two dentists in her office both agree that more common health issues stem from poor dental care and health. Migraine headaches are one. The other is sleep apnea. Her office does offer a mouth device for those who "traditional" sleep apnea machines do not work well or those who are looking for alternatives to the mask.
AND, did you know some chewing gums can neutralize the acids from sodas or high-acid fruit juices, like grapefruit and orange. Wrigley`s Extra is one. The others are Orbit and Trident (the dentists preferred Trident). Chewing them after drinking a soda or juice can minimize SOME damage that acids cause to teeth. NO, it does not take the place of regular brushing and flossing. .
AND whitening type tooth pastes are extremely hard on tooth enamel and not recommended, especially if you have softer enamel.

(Edit: Yes, I corrected my mis-typed "Prostrate" to "Prostate" above. Hey, it was close and they look the same, even when I re-read it before posting! I HAVE to proofread my posts, since I do not know how to type. Thanks, Accumulator!)
 
Lonnie- Well, the Prostate Specific Antigen is a worthy topic of discussion too :D

(Your autocorrect doesn`t know from the Prostate ;) )
 
Have any of you seen you scans? After reading this post I went and looked at the scan I had done on my chest a year ago tomorrow and am surprised at how much they can make out from them. The bones in 3d look quite detailed but to me everything else looks too cloudy/blurt to really make anything out. The scan actually contains 1284 separate images.

I am pretty sure I found my heart but could not see where the stents were which I thought would stand out.

As far as my score is I have no idea and there very few comments. here is a copy of a little of it.
Calcified coronary atherosclerotic plaque is noted. Nopericardial effusion. Thoracic aorta is non-aneurysmal.

No lymphadenopathy in the chest. Unremarkable CT chest.

Primary Diagnostic Code: MINOR ABNORMALITY
Click to expand...

Here is a couple images from it.
i-q9G8js2.png

i-jZ6rFC4.png
 
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