I had severe left sided pain Wednesday evening. Grabbed my hospital bag and took a taxi to emergency. It wasn't a heart attack but i was admitted to cardiology ward because of irregular ecg. On Sunday morning i am having a cardiac catheterization to look for and treat any narrowing of arteries.
I am being given lovastatin. Has anyone had this. Any side effects?
100 mg aspirin. Is that ok with pred?
They want me take omeprazole . Is that necessary?
Has anyone had this procedure...when can i get back to my online job? How will i feel afterwards?
I will take extra 5mg pred sat night to help adrenals. Ok? ( now on 2mg and thought life might improve...that'll teach me!
A big thank you to anyone who can give any advice and help me get through this.
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agingfeminist
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No advice I can give as not on those drugs and don't know the answer to your questions.Somebody knowledgeable will be here soon for you. I just wanted to say hang on in there and to wish you well. 🤗
Sorry to hear that - but you are in the best place.
Not much point asking about side effects - what suits me might not suit you and vice versa.
Low dose aspirin has been used a lot in the past in GCA patients to reduce cardiovascular events - so that is alongside high dose pred. It may increase tendency to bruise/bleed and also cause gastric irritation - a case for a PPI or the like so yes, take the omeprazole.
Make sure they are aware you are a long term steroid patient - they should provide i.v. hydrocortisone during the procedure and monitor you post-op for adrenal insufficiency. It is up to the anaesthetist in charge of you to decide how much but that is their job.
I'm having an ablation procedure in a month which also involves threading wires from the groin to the heart so quite similar, I am assured I will be back to normal duties after a couple of days, the only limitation is not to lift anything heavy for a couple of weeks to reduce the risk of the groin wound bleeding.
Thank you so much for replying so quickly. I so appreciate all the support and advice you have given me over the years. Such a help and so reassuring. Feeling much steadier now. Thank you and all the best with your procedure!
If your artery/arteries require stents then that’s a very common procedure -and shouldn’t have any long term affect on you working (apart from feeling better)
I imagine they want you take Omeprazole because of the aspirin as well as the Pred (assuming they know you’re on that). .. and yes it’s fine to take both together. I took all when I had GCA.
I cannot offer any advice but just wanted to tell you are not alone, it is tough for you at the moment and the health anxiety we face all the time is wearing. Cliche I know but you are in the right place, sounds like they have a good plan for you. Best of luck for Sunday, try to get some sleep. Let us know how it goes.
Best of care to you. So thankful with you that we have people like DL and PMRpro and others to walk alongside and share their experience and wisdom. Hoping for the best outcome for you! 🙏
I do so agree, where would we be without our invisible friends? Very best of luck to you . The thinking about, and not knowing is the worst. When all is done, recovery is on the way. 🍀
I totally understand how you are feeling. Went through a cardiac event culminating with a catherization. The nurse kept reminding me to be careful with my arm where they threaded a line for the cath. Everyone is different but it took me some time to feel whole again. I was put on a blood thinner and aspirin (had to get off the aspirin as I was bleeding too much). I take Zetia for cholesterol and Pantoprazole (a PPI which was given to me with my GCA).You will do fine and if something doesn’t feel right make sure you speak to your medical team. Only the best to you.
This is really helpful. I need to meet things as they come. And perhaps alert work that maybe Tuesday's meeting needs to be postponed! All online fortunately. Also thanks for reminding me about keeping medical team informed. I am great at ignoring things. Perhaps private chat me and let me know how you are doing now. Did it change your life in any way?
I had a sudden pain (and a few other symptoms) in the centre of my chest which didn’t ease, was taken by ambulance to A and E. Had some tests and was told I had had a heart attack. Was admitted and a few days later had an angioplasty, with one stent fitted. I was sent home from hospital with the usual cocktail of medications.
That piece of music is one of my favourites and I happened to be listening to it when I joined Healthunlocked. I listen to Classic FM where it’s played quite often.
Superb staff. Wonderful hi tech bed. Bed in quiet 3 bed room and i have the bed by the window. Pile of good books to read. Shame about the food! A colleague at work said it was as near as i get to a vacation....i normally only work.
Hi, our lives are filled with surprises, not all the kind we want. On the good side, thankfully we PMR sufferers have this very helpful forum. I’m sending you warm hugs filled with happy thoughts for your coming procedure, and a quick recovery, from a 8 year PMR gal, in the USA.
hi there. For some reason I’ve only just read this.
I so hope you’re feeling much improved now, agingfeminist. It must have been frightening being on your own, but thank goodness for all those “experts” on here who always seem to say the right things and give us reassurance.
thank you so much for replying. I recovered very quickly and began a little work the next day! I do sometimes feel a little apprehensive about what life might throw at me when I least expect it...anothe PMR flare???????????
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