A while back I wrote that I planned to look at cardio/heart testing to see if there were any problems that we were missing as part of our overall diagnosis.
A few days ago, I had a full heart check-up including:
Blood Panel
Chest X-ray
Electrocardiogram (EKG)
Vascular screening (ABI)
Exercise Stress Test (EST)
Echocardiogram (Echo)
128 slice Coronary CT scan (Calcium score also reported)
First, the blood tests. I have nothing to say about why these tests are so bizarre, except that I had a flu shot the day before - which should have had zero effect. But see for yourself, my results are wacky.
AST of 79!!! ALT of 70!!! I have never had numbers like this EVER. The results make no sense. The heart doctor wanted me to wait 30 days and retest. I couldn’t wait. I went to a blood lab and obtained new results.
WTF? AST is now exceptionally low. This test is 4 days after the first.
But, look at my cholesterol (259) and my Triglycerides (360) and compare them with the results from 4 days ago — 178 and 64. The strangest results I have ever had.
About the heart – the cardiologist rated it as “perfect”.
The heart calcium score was 11 – which according to my reading is “good”, but not “perfect”.
All the other tests were ok, although I was unable to get my heart rate high enough for the stress test before I got tired and made them quit. Nurses, doctors everyone - told me I need more exercise. Damn.
Two hours before they gave me medicine to lower my resting heart rate because my resting heart rate wasn’t coming down low enough for quality CT readings.
Let me bitch for a minute … For the CT scan, they need to push chemical into your blood to help with the contrast. To do that, they first put some type of valve in your arm with a lock so they can do that. They use a BIG FUCKING NEEDLE; I wanted it in my left arm, but the nurse had to go in my right, and told me to stop squeezing my hand to make my blood vessels stand up. Of course she MISSED and stuck it deep into my arm. I almost starting puking. She removed it and got a supervisor.
The supervisor put it in my left arm (what a surprise) on her first attempt. Apparently I went white and I told them I was going to vomit. They had me lie down and the feeling subsided within 10 minutes. It felt WORSE than a blood let.
Why is it that NO ONE uses the numbing cream/spray on the skin before inserting needles? I have a low pain thresh-hold … I know that.
And so, I have now eliminated anything heart (cardio vascular) related to the problems I have experienced.