Lemon, you're right, it is a internal defib, I don't know why I put pacemaker.

Yeah, the surgeon said that if he would have had 1 more artery that needed a stint he would have had to do by-pass surgery. But that he didn't want to do that due to the kidney thing (I think that's what he said, I was so sleepy).

He is diabetic, overweight (Not grossly so, he's like 6 foot and 212) I don't know that's not really overweight is it? My Mom was saying he was yesterday....anyway, the Doc said that his arteries are calcifying (Is that the same as arterial sclerosis?) so it was difficult to do the heart cath. Also they said he needs to be on Plavix. And that his kidneys are only at 50%, he said this was due to his diabetes.

My Dad always has worked out/exercised quite a bit, never aerobic exercise usually more weights. He doesn't smoke, so that's at least good (wish I could quit).

Lemme ask you a question though, a few years ago, he hit his head while working on a car, he went to his doc because his head hurt and neck were stiff. The doctor put him on 800 mg ibuprofen and a muscle relaxer, but he continued having the headaches/neck pain. Well the day before Thanksgiving he called me and my daughter answered the phone, and told me Grandpa was on the phone, I pick it up and say "hello" and all I hear is him grunting, I start to panic, I'm like "DAD?!?!" He had the phone away from his ear, he had fallen backwards while on the phone and couldn't get back up. So I haul @ss over there, get him at least sitting up, call my WH (who wasn't an alien at the time) to help me get him up, and my Dad said he had to go to the restroom, well I noticed he wasn't picking up his feet when he walked...so after calling his doctor a million times and not getting a call back I took him to the ER and he had a subdural hematoma from hitting his head almost 2 weeks earlier......(Yes, I'm sure you're wondering where the question comes in lol) the took him in and did emergency surgery (they thought they could get it through burr holes, but ended up having to take out a piece of bone to get to it) my question is, will being on this plavix make him more suseptible to getting a bleed/closed head trauma???? He's always with the hitting his head on something I'm gonna make him wear a football helmet.

Arrrrrrgh, my parents worry me to death....they like to not tell me when something is wrong with them, and then I get over there and it's something they should've gone to the Hospital about days ago....they drive me completely insane!!!

-Caren

</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Originally posted by CarenMc:
<strong> my question is, will being on this plavix make him more suseptible to getting a bleed/closed head trauma???? He's always with the hitting his head on something I'm gonna make him wear a football helmet.


-Caren </strong></font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Caren:

Well, in a nutshell, I don't think that Plavix will make him that much more susceptible to a cerebral (head) bleed. If he was on Coumadin (a blood thinner) I would say he was certainly at increased risk for a repeat head bleed given his frequent falls and potential for trauma, but not at greatly increased risk with PLavix. Plavix is like a "super aspirin" and clearly your father has advanced coronary artery disease, so PLavix is a must to help with blocking the platelets clumping at the sites of narrowing in his arteries. I suspect the Cardiologists placed drug eluting stents in his blockages and these stents MANDATE the use of Plavix for at least 3 -6 months to maintain the stent patency....He probably is on Aspirin also. To your other question, arterial sclerosis is the same thing as "calcified" arteries.

If they are talking about putting in a defibrillator, then your dad must have a heart function less than 30%. So clearly his coronary artery disease is unfortunately very advanced. Doing a bypass surgery now, with a patient with renal (kidney) dysfunction and depressed heart function (like your poor dad) is not a cardiac surgeon's envy. Outcomes are not so hot. I suspect that the "reason" they had difficulty doing the heart cath is that he has diseased arteries everywhere and the large artery in the leg is where access is obtained to do the procedure. The aorta and leg arteries were also probably quite diseased and this makes putting cathethers up there difficult. Anyways, feel free to ask me any other questions. This is one aspect I can comment on with confidence.

As per your marriage building issues...no comment there. YOu seem like a bright, articulate and attarctive woman, why you would ever allow yourslef to "beg" for SF from your husband is beyond me. Anyways, good luck in winning your husband back. As you no doubt know, affair relationshiops NEVER last, and you are likely to get another chance to win your WH back if you "wait" it out long enough.

CHeers

LM

Thanks Lemon-

Yes the stents "drug eluting" but they said he'd be on Plavix for the duration, I don't know if he's on another blood thinner or not. They are putting him in cardiac rehab, and doing another stress test at some point.

It FINALLY got through to my mother she has to cook differently, so she dumped all the artery clogging food on me LMAO...I'm like are you trying to kill me?

Thanks for the reply Lemon....you rock.

-Caren