Posted: 7/28/2016 10:23:02 PM EDT
| How serious is it to have a heart catheter put in / used |
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About as serious as a heart attack. 
It's mostly used to determine if there is coronary artery narrowing. If so, they may put a stent in depending on severity and location. It may also be a precursor to coronary artery bipass grafting where they bipass a narrowed portion in one or more of the arteries. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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My pops went in for chest pain earlier today. I went to the ER with him and everything seemed fine.
First blood test was good. More relatives showed up and the docs said everything seemed fine. I spent 4 hours or so there and left to clean up and eat. Got home and was told the 2nd blood test was good. Now 10 minutes later I'm hearing they're putting a heart catheter in. My family said it's nothing serious but it seems pretty serious to me |
| I had one done in March. Easy Peasy. Dr. was at my heart before I knew he even started. Went in my wrist. Once they started procedure probably took a half hour. Once finished I was kept for 24 hrs. It was like a mini vacation. First time being admitted to the hospital. I kicked back. Watched tv. Slept, I enjoyed it. The n got a week off work. |
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Quoted: My pops went in for chest pain earlier today. I went to the ER with him and everything seemed fine. First blood test was good. More relatives showed up and the docs said everything seemed fine. I spent 4 hours or so there and left to clean up and eat. Got home and was told the 2nd blood test was good. Now 10 minutes later I'm hearing they're putting a heart catheter in. My family said it's nothing serious but it seems pretty serious to me The blood tests - probably cardiac enzymes. If they're good it means he's not having an honest-to-God heart attack in real time. Having said that, he may have narrowing(s) of the coronaries that could lead to an arrhythmia or heart attack, with the chest pain as a precursor symptom - he may not be having a heart attack right now, but he might be right on the edge of having enough blood flow to the heart so that any extra stress or exertion causes chest pain. The catheterization is to see if there is narrowing - they shoot radio-opaque dye into the arteries. If there is narrowing, they may put in a stent to hold the artery open. |
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Hmm. Odd. I'm not sure why they would do that unless they are still suspecting some kind of coronary ischemia. Did they do any other testing other than bloodwork? Echocardiogram? Maybe they mean a PA catheter or arterial line if he's unstable. I've also seen cardiologists do diagnostic caths if the labs and EKG don't fit the presenting story if they suspect the normal results to be a false negative. |
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The only thing I heard them mention was that his kidney levels were very slightly elevated and his potassium a tid bit low but other wise looked fine.
He complained of being hard to breathe but everything looked fine. I kinda feel bad as I left thinking it would end up acid reflux like it had been a few other times They're calling me back over to the hospital which they told me not to worry about it earlier. Good vibes and all that is appreciated |
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Maybe they mean a PA catheter or arterial line if he's unstable. I've also seen cardiologists do diagnostic caths if the labs and EKG don't fit the presenting story if they suspect the normal results to be a false negative. Quoted:
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Hmm. Odd. I'm not sure why they would do that unless they are still suspecting some kind of coronary ischemia. Did they do any other testing other than bloodwork? Echocardiogram? Maybe they mean a PA catheter or arterial line if he's unstable. I've also seen cardiologists do diagnostic caths if the labs and EKG don't fit the presenting story if they suspect the normal results to be a false negative. Yeah, it's always difficult to give advice when we don't have the luxury of getting a history or performing a physical exam. Not that all doctors get a good history or perform a physical exam.
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Yeah, it's always difficult to give advice when we don't have the luxury of getting a history or performing a physical exam. Not that all doctors get a good history or perform a physical exam. Quoted:
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Hmm. Odd. I'm not sure why they would do that unless they are still suspecting some kind of coronary ischemia. Did they do any other testing other than bloodwork? Echocardiogram? Maybe they mean a PA catheter or arterial line if he's unstable. I've also seen cardiologists do diagnostic caths if the labs and EKG don't fit the presenting story if they suspect the normal results to be a false negative. Yeah, it's always difficult to give advice when we don't have the luxury of getting a history or performing a physical exam. Not that all doctors get a good history or perform a physical exam. You're not kidding there. A nurse last month commented that she was happy to see that I actually break out the stethoscope and use it on my patients. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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You're not kidding there. A nurse last month commented that she was happy to see that I actually break out the stethoscope and use it on my patients. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile Quoted:
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Hmm. Odd. I'm not sure why they would do that unless they are still suspecting some kind of coronary ischemia. Did they do any other testing other than bloodwork? Echocardiogram? Maybe they mean a PA catheter or arterial line if he's unstable. I've also seen cardiologists do diagnostic caths if the labs and EKG don't fit the presenting story if they suspect the normal results to be a false negative. Yeah, it's always difficult to give advice when we don't have the luxury of getting a history or performing a physical exam. Not that all doctors get a good history or perform a physical exam. You're not kidding there. A nurse last month commented that she was happy to see that I actually break out the stethoscope and use it on my patients. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile You're making other doctors look bad.
OP, any updates? Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |