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Pastimes : Heart Attacks, Cancer and strokes. Preventative approaches

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From: LindyBill	10/31/2008 2:11:52 AM
	Read Replies (2) of 39297

Every time I decide that I am too cynical about Doctors, I read a story like this. From the TYP site. Posted: 6/17/2008 11:29:54 AM I have been a TYP member for over a year but this is a first time post. My wife (55 yrs) has experienced some angina symptoms (tightness or heaviness in her chest) while walking uphill or pulling a hose around watering flowers. She does have high cholesterol and triglycerides based on her recent blood test (standard HDL, LDL, total, TG). Her primary care physician referred her to a cardiologist who performed a stress test. During our meeting with the cardiologist, he said the test was inconclusive. He recommended an angiogram so that if they found blockage a stent could be inserted. They were ready to schedule the procedure when I talked with my wife about holding off until we could learn more. We are scheduled to see ther Dr. who would perform the procedure this week to discuss options. My feeling upon leaving the office was comparable that of leaving an encounter with a time share vacation salesman. Since my wifes symptoms are moderate to mild, is it recommended practice to do an invasive procedure like an angiogram? No discussions of medication or blood tests occured. My wife was handed a script for Lipitor and told to start on a baby aspirin a day. This seems like a big rush but we were left with the feeling that angina means a blockage somewhere and if any plaque ruptures upstream there would be a heart attack. I have read a lot of negatives about angiograms and stents. The COURAGE trial apparently showed no benefits to stenting over medication. I would appreciate some feedback on whether an angiogram is recommended if the symptoms are not severe. It seems like a prelude to a stent being inserted. Are CT angiograms less risky? Is it necessary to assess the location and blockage severity if medication and lifestyle modifications are to be used? We were planning a heart scan this summer as I had one last December and it proved very valuable. The Dr. told her that they were not of any great value since it would not show blockage location and severity, especially where soft plaque is concerned. I know this is a long post but I have no knowlege in the area of how a decision is made to do these procedures. ***************************************** We decided to hold off on the angiogram and informed the cardiologist. This was based upon symptoms being mild to moderate and not continuous as well as questioning just what benefit would be gained at this point by finding out the location(s) of restriction. My wife has started fish oil (4 caps a day of Omega RX), K2 (200 ugram) and Vit D (6000 units). Also Added 500 mg Mg from Mg taurate. My wife had picked up some literature from the receptionist during our prior Dr appointment. As I looked over the brochure from the cardiologist's office I noticed a section on a lipid management center in the same hospital. There was nothing really definitive in the description but I had not known that this practice was available. ( I had called the hospital the previous year when I was looking for a place to get a heart scan and radiology had talked about CT angiograms. The person I talked to at that time didn't know what calcium scoring was. ) I thought I should call the group from the brochure to cover all the bases and just to see if I would get the same response I had gotten from so many practices the year before. I was in for a surprise. The person who answered the phone responded to my inquiries with " the doctor recommends calcium scoring to access plaque extent and evaluate progress. We also use NMR blood profiles to get data on LDL particle count, especially small LDL". Needless to say I proceeded to get referrals for my wife and myself. I asked if she had heard about the Track Your Plaque program but she hadn't. She did however take down the website info. She was also a patient in the practice. ************************************************* As you can see from the previous post date, it can take a long time to get some answers. My wife FINALLY got a heart scan. This was on a GE Lightspeed 64 slice machine. She called the Dr's office and inquired about the results and was told"it was great, no worry!". I asked "What was the score?" They didn't say. So I called the office requesting that they call my wife and give her the total score. They called her the next day and said "The calcium score was zero." This was of course great news! Even with hypothyroid issues (which are now being treated by an endocrinologist that is very open to all treatments and encourages discussion) and above TYP values for lipids. I am thinking genetically blessed! She has been on fish oil (6 caps/day), vit D (6000 units/day), vit K2 and magnesium (400 mg/day from Mg-Glycinate) supps since June. This was intended to stabilize her "condition". She intends to stay on the supps for( if nothing else) bone density insurance. The one thing that still bothers me is the "chest discomfort/tightness" she feels on exertion such as walking uphill or raking leaves , etc. Could this be caused by a non-cardiac situation? Could she have blockage that does not have a calcium component? Could it be Prinzmetals angina (vasospasm)? I am trying to gather some information to discuss with our cardio during our visit in November.

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