I Am Not Ashamed To Admit When I Am Wrong
I have done a lot of complaining about the VA (or Veterans Health Care System ) in many of my comments
I was hospitalized February 1st and spent a day in ICU ,,my Blood Pressure so high I was ready to have a stroke .
I went to a non Va facility seeking a second opinion about my heart ,since for so long the Va was wrong about my back
Why not my heart too .
I was told last year they were sending me for a heart lung study since I have problems with both ,but the appointment was never made and to be honest I was just tired of arguing with a nurse that someone dropped the ball ,I was never given an appointment
So I went to the ER of one of the best hospitals in the state ,and they put me right away in ICU
They changed one of my meds and told me I could go on the ward ,or they would let me go home ,provided I was seen by a Cardiologist Specialist first thing Monday morning (this was Friday )
I called to make an appointment as soon as they opened Monday morning and I was told I could be seen in my city ,and not have to drive the 60 mile trip ..and they transfered me to them
I was told at first that the earliest they could see me was mid March ,,I asked had the other group also sent my telemetry and vitals ,,they said no they would get it ,call me back
Which she did asking can I come on in NOW !!!! which I did
I was seen right away ,new EKG ,new work up ,then I see the specialist ,,and he wants more tests run ,and right away
But he adds another medication ,,tells me get right on it ,,,he will see me in 30 days ,tests will be done by then and he can also see how the meds are working .
Within days my BP is back lower then its been in a year ,I start feeling like I might actually live .
Tuesday I have an appointment with pain management ,everything goes well ,BP the lowest they have seen it in the year I have been seeing them ,,Doc writes my scripts for 3 months ,,,tells me it must be nice to no longer get a hard time getting my pain meds and only having to see a Doctor 4 times a year ,it is
But I had an appointment with my VA primary care doctor on Wednesday ,,,so I go to the lab to get blood work to have it complete when I see my Doctor ,,,,give blood and a UA ,,and go home
In an hour I am getting a call asking to speak to me ,,,and I need a driver ,,but to come to the VA right away
my Potassium is critically low ,I need a potassium IV transfusion right away ,this is critical and imperative I come now .
I get there ,,the ER is aware I am coming ,,and soon I am being told I am being admitted
A heart monitor hooked up to my heart ,,(Wireless ) and the normal telemetry ,,taken up to the floor ,admitted
The meds the Specialist put me on made me discharge to much potassium ,and my already damaged heart was in trouble at current levels .
The Doctor was attentive ,verified I was on pain meds so he could make sure I had them on time ,,not one problem
got me on IV's ,,and checked my Blood Pressure ,Blood sugar(glucose )
Then run down all my meds to see if one of them was the problem ,,,and sure enough ,,,the new med was the culprit ..
But he did not stop there ,,He found in my charts where my white blood count has been way to high since 2000
Which is a sign you are fighting a bad infection ,or possibly cancer
But I was seen by an oncologist several years ago who said I had markers for cancer ,but so far not active cancer cells
So he makes a recommendation I have a PET scan run soon and they follow up on the heart lung specialist
And the Nurses and CNA ,,house keeping ,food service ,,,all were like no stay I ever had in a VA facility
So with a skeletal disease , a collapsed lower lobe of my left lung and CV disease(3 heart attacks )stage 2 diabetic ,and the new med depleting my Potassium ,,I could have died had the VA Lab not caught it and my Nurse not cared enough to get me right back to the hospital
Since I am used to feeling bad ,I just thought it was normal ,,,but it was Hypokalemia ,,Hypokalemia and sudden cardiac death
I take back every bad thing I have ever said about the VA ,were it not for them ,,,,I might not be writing this now
So I say I am sorry when I am wrong ,,I have had trouble with "Certain Doctors " Not the entire VA health care system
Anyone interested in knowing the risk with depleted Potassium ,here is a little info
I am happy to be alive ,they doctor and his team pulled me through and Glucose ,Blood pressure and Potassium are all at perfect levels now and I am home ,,have lots of tests coming up ,,but its good to be alive
Yall have a blessed one ,,I will
Worldwide, approximately three million people suffer sudden cardiac death annually. These deaths often emerge from a complex interplay of substrates and triggers. Disturbed potassium homeostasis among heart cells is an example of such a trigger. Thus, hypokalemia and, also, more transient reductions in plasma potassium concentration are of importance. Hypokalemia is present in 7% to 17% of patients with cardiovascular disease. Furthermore, up to 20% of hospitalized patients and up to 40% of patients on diuretics suffer from hypokalemia. Importantly, inadequate management of hypokalemia was found in 24% of hospitalized patients. Hypokalemia is associated with increased risk of arrhythmia in patients with cardiovascular disease, as well as increased all-cause mortality, cardiovascular mortality and heart failure mortality by up to 10-fold. Long-term potassium homeostasis depends on renal potassium excretion. However, skeletal muscles play an important role in short-term potassium homeostasis, primarily because skeletal muscles contain the largest single pool of potassium in the body. Moreover, due to the large number of Na+/K+ pumps and K+ channels, the skeletal muscles possess a huge capacity for potassium exchange. In cardiovascular patients, hypokalemia is often caused by nonpotassium-sparing diuretics, insufficient potassium intake and a shift of potassium into stores by increased potassium uptake stimulated by catecholamines, beta-adrenoceptor agonists and insulin. Interestingly, drugs with a proven significant positive effect on mortality and morbidity rates in heart failure patients all increase plasma potassium concentration. Thus, it may prove beneficial to pay more attention to hypokalemia and to maintain plasma potassium levels in the upper normal range. The more at risk of fatal arrhythmia and sudden cardiac death a patient is, the more attention should be given to the potassium homeostasis.
I was hospitalized February 1st and spent a day in ICU ,,my Blood Pressure so high I was ready to have a stroke .
I went to a non Va facility seeking a second opinion about my heart ,since for so long the Va was wrong about my back
Why not my heart too .
I was told last year they were sending me for a heart lung study since I have problems with both ,but the appointment was never made and to be honest I was just tired of arguing with a nurse that someone dropped the ball ,I was never given an appointment
So I went to the ER of one of the best hospitals in the state ,and they put me right away in ICU
They changed one of my meds and told me I could go on the ward ,or they would let me go home ,provided I was seen by a Cardiologist Specialist first thing Monday morning (this was Friday )
I called to make an appointment as soon as they opened Monday morning and I was told I could be seen in my city ,and not have to drive the 60 mile trip ..and they transfered me to them
I was told at first that the earliest they could see me was mid March ,,I asked had the other group also sent my telemetry and vitals ,,they said no they would get it ,call me back
Which she did asking can I come on in NOW !!!! which I did
I was seen right away ,new EKG ,new work up ,then I see the specialist ,,and he wants more tests run ,and right away
But he adds another medication ,,tells me get right on it ,,,he will see me in 30 days ,tests will be done by then and he can also see how the meds are working .
Within days my BP is back lower then its been in a year ,I start feeling like I might actually live .
Tuesday I have an appointment with pain management ,everything goes well ,BP the lowest they have seen it in the year I have been seeing them ,,Doc writes my scripts for 3 months ,,,tells me it must be nice to no longer get a hard time getting my pain meds and only having to see a Doctor 4 times a year ,it is
But I had an appointment with my VA primary care doctor on Wednesday ,,,so I go to the lab to get blood work to have it complete when I see my Doctor ,,,,give blood and a UA ,,and go home
In an hour I am getting a call asking to speak to me ,,,and I need a driver ,,but to come to the VA right away
my Potassium is critically low ,I need a potassium IV transfusion right away ,this is critical and imperative I come now .
I get there ,,the ER is aware I am coming ,,and soon I am being told I am being admitted
A heart monitor hooked up to my heart ,,(Wireless ) and the normal telemetry ,,taken up to the floor ,admitted
The meds the Specialist put me on made me discharge to much potassium ,and my already damaged heart was in trouble at current levels .
The Doctor was attentive ,verified I was on pain meds so he could make sure I had them on time ,,not one problem
got me on IV's ,,and checked my Blood Pressure ,Blood sugar(glucose )
Then run down all my meds to see if one of them was the problem ,,,and sure enough ,,,the new med was the culprit ..
But he did not stop there ,,He found in my charts where my white blood count has been way to high since 2000
Which is a sign you are fighting a bad infection ,or possibly cancer
But I was seen by an oncologist several years ago who said I had markers for cancer ,but so far not active cancer cells
So he makes a recommendation I have a PET scan run soon and they follow up on the heart lung specialist
And the Nurses and CNA ,,house keeping ,food service ,,,all were like no stay I ever had in a VA facility
So with a skeletal disease , a collapsed lower lobe of my left lung and CV disease(3 heart attacks )stage 2 diabetic ,and the new med depleting my Potassium ,,I could have died had the VA Lab not caught it and my Nurse not cared enough to get me right back to the hospital
Since I am used to feeling bad ,I just thought it was normal ,,,but it was Hypokalemia ,,Hypokalemia and sudden cardiac death
I take back every bad thing I have ever said about the VA ,were it not for them ,,,,I might not be writing this now
So I say I am sorry when I am wrong ,,I have had trouble with "Certain Doctors " Not the entire VA health care system
Anyone interested in knowing the risk with depleted Potassium ,here is a little info
I am happy to be alive ,they doctor and his team pulled me through and Glucose ,Blood pressure and Potassium are all at perfect levels now and I am home ,,have lots of tests coming up ,,but its good to be alive
Yall have a blessed one ,,I will
Worldwide, approximately three million people suffer sudden cardiac death annually. These deaths often emerge from a complex interplay of substrates and triggers. Disturbed potassium homeostasis among heart cells is an example of such a trigger. Thus, hypokalemia and, also, more transient reductions in plasma potassium concentration are of importance. Hypokalemia is present in 7% to 17% of patients with cardiovascular disease. Furthermore, up to 20% of hospitalized patients and up to 40% of patients on diuretics suffer from hypokalemia. Importantly, inadequate management of hypokalemia was found in 24% of hospitalized patients. Hypokalemia is associated with increased risk of arrhythmia in patients with cardiovascular disease, as well as increased all-cause mortality, cardiovascular mortality and heart failure mortality by up to 10-fold. Long-term potassium homeostasis depends on renal potassium excretion. However, skeletal muscles play an important role in short-term potassium homeostasis, primarily because skeletal muscles contain the largest single pool of potassium in the body. Moreover, due to the large number of Na+/K+ pumps and K+ channels, the skeletal muscles possess a huge capacity for potassium exchange. In cardiovascular patients, hypokalemia is often caused by nonpotassium-sparing diuretics, insufficient potassium intake and a shift of potassium into stores by increased potassium uptake stimulated by catecholamines, beta-adrenoceptor agonists and insulin. Interestingly, drugs with a proven significant positive effect on mortality and morbidity rates in heart failure patients all increase plasma potassium concentration. Thus, it may prove beneficial to pay more attention to hypokalemia and to maintain plasma potassium levels in the upper normal range. The more at risk of fatal arrhythmia and sudden cardiac death a patient is, the more attention should be given to the potassium homeostasis.
