Look Tom, let me go at this from a different angle.

Enjoy yourself in the hospital. I mean, what's the option?   You can piss and moan and act like an ass and it won't get you anywhere, least of all out. They're going to release you when they're done so just go with the flow. Having heart problems and the concurrent testing is about like riding an elephant downhill. Once it gets started, there ain't no stopping the sucker, so just hold on and enjoy the view.

And the view is the thing. See, they will want to look at your heart from a lot of directions from the inside out so you'll probably get a heart cath which uses a probe slid into the femoral artery at the groin and they will run it up the aorta and into the heart and it's feeder arteries. No pain but the groin takes awhile to stop bleeding so they keep pressure on it after the test and you lay still for about 6 hours. But the test itself is fun to watch. You can see the screens with the probe snaking around inside of you!

The best method to check on valve problems is an echocardiagram, which is just a sonigram like they do with pregnant women to look at the baby. You get a really great view of the blood passing through the heart and any valve that might be leaking or allowing a backflow. If they need an even better picture though, they will go with a T.E.E........and this one kinda' sucks. It stands for trans-esophageal echocardiagram and it means they run a tube down your throat to do the sonigram. It' over in about 10 minutes and that's the best thing I can say about it. You'll probably have some catscan and/or MRI work, but that's just lying in a tube and pretty boring.

The most common male valve problem is with the mitral valve although it could be something else. In any case, it's fixable and if not, it's replaceable! The St. Jude's replacement valve you can actually hear tick at times so you know you're alive! Because they are the first place an infection goes, you need to be a bit careful should they replace it. On the other hand, it will get you past every other person in a crowded E.R. Walk in and say you're running a fever and have an artificial mitral valve and you go to the front of the pack immediately!!! No more waiting around.

Actually Tom, I'm sure they'll find the problem whatever it might be and I know it's a real pain in the ass to be there, but just ride it out with a smile and a few laughs with the Docs and Techs and the time passes faster. I took simple stuff and tried to do them perfectly.....like I figured out exactly how to peel an orange and it took me almost 2 hours to eat one! Anything to pass the time.....

Good luck and keep us posted Linn. You both have our best thoughts. Karen well knows what you are going through Linn. Anyway we can help, let us know.

Spaw

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