Enlarged heart

[olive2709]

Just found out through xray that I have this GP very took blood forgot to ask what it was for. I have GCA and take steroids 25mg per day don't know what iam dealing can someone put in on the right track

[CDreamer]

I am sorry but I don't understand your post, what is your question?

Maybe you were anxious when posting. Only your consultant or your GP will be able to advise you on specific medical problems.

GPs take bloods as a matter of course for regular monitoring but it will also show up some problems if your heart, or any other organ malfunctions.

Finding out that there is something wrong with your heart is very scary and there is a time lag when there is not enough information which can leave you feeling as though you are on your own but as more information is processed this passes.

Please let us a specific question or concern as we are then more likely to be to reply appropriately.

Very best wishes CD

[CDreamer]

Olive I wonder if you posted on the wrong forum, this is the AF forum and dialogue about Atrial Fibrillation and Atrial Flutter and other heart arrythmias. I don't know what GCS is.

[olive2709]

When I put this condition into find communities on this site your site came up. All I wanted was someone to point me in the right direction sorry I made such a mistake won't happen again I do know what AF is

[dedeottie]

I think we are just worried that we wouldn't be able to help you enough as we don't have enough experience of your situation. However, this is a really caring site and if you would like to stay I'm sure you are very welcome. Also, there are people on this forum who do have a degree of heart failure either as a separate issue to A.F. or as a result of longstanding untreated A.F. so if any of them see this I'm sure they will reply. As dreamer says, at the very least we all know how it feels to have something wrong with the way your heart works. Good luck.

[dedeottie]

Sorry, I meant to say a degree of heart enlargement not heart failure.x

[excalibur]

An enlarged heart could be dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) which is often accompanied by AF (this was the case with me). The Cardiomyopathy Association / Cardiomyopathy UK have a website and helpline for this. But check with your GP whether this is what he thinks you might have

[TyBryn91]

GCA is giant cell arteritis. Hence Steroids . A Rhumatologist could advise. The Enlarged Heart on Xray may be unrelated Ask your GP to explain any tests & indications .

[Beancounter Volunteer]

Hi Olive

I am not medically qualified in any way, but from what you have written firstly X Ray is not a great way of looking at the heart, too much soft tissue, so ideally you need an echocardiogram or a CT scan to confirm what your Doctor has said.

The GCA as someone has said is giant cell arteritis which I understand is a hardening of the arteries, which if you have got an enlarged heart will make things more difficult. Plus Cardiomyopathy (enlarged heart) is often aligned with AF it's a bit chicken and egg most of us have it but what came first?

I think you need specialist advice, from a cardiologist, and you need to have an echocardiogram, potentially a CT scan, and then to sit down and have whatever they find explained to you properly.

If we can help then please yell, but we might not have experience of your issues.

Be well

Ian

[olive2709 in reply to Beancounter]

Thanks Ian had my GCA since last September started on left side it is a autoimmune condition the main artery that gets effected runs behind the eyes so stopping sight loss is the first hurdle .I have been under ENT consultant for 2 years having deep ultrasound scans because of scar tissue build up at the branch of artery left side of neck from surgery more then 30years ago which has been causing pins and needles plus numbness .All coming together for me in last 12 hours doing research to day and think I have been showing symptoms of enlarged heart for more then 2 years strange if one GP who wanted to check me out as guide lines say because of high dose of steroids has found the problem .Even the multi discipline team at the hospital were at a loss

Olive

[Barb1]

Could be a variety of reasons. My AF caused mine

[Barb1]

You could also try the CMA website