Had a heart attack on Monday.
Discussion
Welcome to the SAS (stent appreciation society). I have three, kindly fitted by Dr Iqbal in Sheffield several years ago.
In my case I was diagnosed with prostate cancer but during a pre-op assessment a heart irregularity was discovered, ruling out surgery. Instead I had radiotherapy. Once that was finished my heart was sorted out and an angioplasty scheduled. It took a few hours, I was awake the whole time watching my heart pulsating on a screen and chatting to a very nice nurse who held my hand throughout. No discomfort at all apart from a couple of minutes when something was injected that made me think 'WFT!'
I was told I'd had a heart attack though I'd never had any chest pains, no discomfort or sensation of any kind; apparently it can happen that way. I'm on aspirin, eplerenone, bisoprolol and candasarten and doing fine. Keep taking the tablets and you will too.
In my case I was diagnosed with prostate cancer but during a pre-op assessment a heart irregularity was discovered, ruling out surgery. Instead I had radiotherapy. Once that was finished my heart was sorted out and an angioplasty scheduled. It took a few hours, I was awake the whole time watching my heart pulsating on a screen and chatting to a very nice nurse who held my hand throughout. No discomfort at all apart from a couple of minutes when something was injected that made me think 'WFT!'
I was told I'd had a heart attack though I'd never had any chest pains, no discomfort or sensation of any kind; apparently it can happen that way. I'm on aspirin, eplerenone, bisoprolol and candasarten and doing fine. Keep taking the tablets and you will too.
randomeddy said:
I am 57.
Do the arteries block up gradually or is it sudden. I had been feeling tired and have always been restless.
Wasn't doing anything strenuous but the job for the last 18 months has been hard work, lately we have had a skeleton staff and have been doing long hours.
We're pretty much the same age... I have 3 stents and a bypass.Do the arteries block up gradually or is it sudden. I had been feeling tired and have always been restless.
Wasn't doing anything strenuous but the job for the last 18 months has been hard work, lately we have had a skeleton staff and have been doing long hours.
Yes, the arteries do gradually block up - more if you smoke and have an unhealthy diet, but even relatively healthy people have furred up arteries. The major arteries such as the LAD (left anterior descending) can block and then it's lights out. Others can block and not present such a huge issue. A blockage on a junction cannot be stetted and will need a bypass which is the full Alien special effects that I had.
The aspirin is to thin the blood a little - I take one amongst my daily tube of smarties.
bigdom said:
AlexC1981 said:
Is it possible to get checked to see if your tubes are blocking up? Some sort of scan?
I lost my dad to a heart attack in his early 40s and I'm 38 now.
Yes, you would need an Echocardiogram. These are available on the NHS and private.I lost my dad to a heart attack in his early 40s and I'm 38 now.
A lot of very good advice for you to take on board OP. I had mine in 2012, had 5 stents and now have an ICD (defibrillator) fitted which gives me a chance if it happens again. Luckily for me I was young and fit enough to get through it.
My advice is just take your time on recovery and listen to your body, it may well take months to get back to decent health but as already mentioned take the rehab exercise classes as they really help.
For those with a history of heart issues in the family, Insist on getting yourselves checked out by the GP.
My advice is just take your time on recovery and listen to your body, it may well take months to get back to decent health but as already mentioned take the rehab exercise classes as they really help.
For those with a history of heart issues in the family, Insist on getting yourselves checked out by the GP.
AlexC1981 said:
Is it possible to get checked to see if your tubes are blocking up? Some sort of scan?
I lost my dad to a heart attack in his early 40s and I'm 38 now.
You would need an angiography with contrast dye to show the flow through the arteries and you don't tend to have them unless it's part of an urgent diagnostic procedure. I lost my dad to a heart attack in his early 40s and I'm 38 now.
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/angiography/
You have to take all necessary steps to reduce the risk - you can't do anything about genetics but you can exercise, eat healthily and stop smoking. Remember that even if you have several family members that have had heart attacks, they may just have had crap diets and poor lifestyles - it doesn't always mean you've inherited a higher risk. Annual blood pressure and cholesterol checks plus medication reviews are all that's required of a GP if you are on a CHD register so it's best to look after yourself.
Sad to read that OP, but pleased to see you posted afterwards!
I just hope you make a good recovery.
I'm guessing the daily Aspirin will be the 75mg version I have been on since I had a TIA in 2006.
After that happened I did change my approach to life, so if nothing else it did serve as a "wake up call".
I just hope you make a good recovery.
I'm guessing the daily Aspirin will be the 75mg version I have been on since I had a TIA in 2006.
After that happened I did change my approach to life, so if nothing else it did serve as a "wake up call".
bigpriest said:
You would need an angiography with contrast dye to show the flow through the arteries and you don't tend to have them unless it's part of an urgent diagnostic procedure.
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/angiography/
You have to take all necessary steps to reduce the risk - you can't do anything about genetics but you can exercise, eat healthily and stop smoking. Remember that even if you have several family members that have had heart attacks, they may just have had crap diets and poor lifestyles - it doesn't always mean you've inherited a higher risk. Annual blood pressure and cholesterol checks plus medication reviews are all that's required of a GP if you are on a CHD register so it's best to look after yourself.
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/angiography/
You have to take all necessary steps to reduce the risk - you can't do anything about genetics but you can exercise, eat healthily and stop smoking. Remember that even if you have several family members that have had heart attacks, they may just have had crap diets and poor lifestyles - it doesn't always mean you've inherited a higher risk. Annual blood pressure and cholesterol checks plus medication reviews are all that's required of a GP if you are on a CHD register so it's best to look after yourself.
bigdom said:
Mr Pointy said:
Wouldn't it need to be an angiogram to see blocked arteries?
That would generally be carried out after having the Echo first, it’s non invasive and will highlight abnormalities for further investigation.I don't smoke and rarely drink, but exercise is practically non-existent. I've never been able to run more than a couple of miles. In my mid-20s I ran 3 times a week for about 4 months and whilst my muscles felt ok, I would get so out of breath I couldn't carry on. I've always wondered if I had something not quite right there.
I've never been much overweight, though I have lost 1st 10lb over the last year. I've 18.1% body fat, but still have a chunk around the stomach. I've noticed over the last few weeks I've had quite a few headrushes whilst rising, but I thought that might have been due to the weight loss.
I had a very basic health check with Bupa though work a couple of years ago (I don't get these any more) and my cholesterol and blood pressure was slightly elevated. I have a phobia of blood pressure tests and all things heart related, so that might have affected the reading!
OP, I hope you don't mind me borrowing your thread! It's a sharp reminder to me to get checked out.
Welcome to the club! I had mine in 2006 at the age of 51 but have been fine since (touch wood!). A lifetime regime of drugs means the kitchen table looks like a pharmacy every morning, but hey-ho, it's all in a good cause.
Mine left me with intermittent arrhythmia which was even more alarming than the Myocardial Infarction at first, but I have since learned to ignore it once it was proved not to be dangerous.
Fire away with any questions you may have.
Mine left me with intermittent arrhythmia which was even more alarming than the Myocardial Infarction at first, but I have since learned to ignore it once it was proved not to be dangerous.
Fire away with any questions you may have.
Glad you pulled through ok, my father joined the stent and balloon club a few years ago. They don't mess about, in the time it took me to get over to him (they were on holiday in the uk took about 4ish hrs all told) he was all sorted and sat up in bed fussing about some golf society game he'd be missing.
If you have any wobbles after don't ignore them the post event physio/fitness helped him if nothing else there were a lot worse people there than him so he felt better about himself...
If you have any wobbles after don't ignore them the post event physio/fitness helped him if nothing else there were a lot worse people there than him so he felt better about himself...
Can I please join the SAS club.
I had a stent fitted in Oct 2009.At my pre assesment meeting I was asked if I would like to take part in a drugs trial concerning stent rejection.
This was called the STARS programme, organised by James Cook Hospital in Mbro and the main hospital in Edinburgh.
They were concerned that a percentage of stents fitted were being rejected by the persons artery.
They had to recruit 400 people who lived locally and had not had a heart attack.
I qualified for this and after my stent op was sent home with bottles of pills that i had to take each day for around a month.
It seems they were some kind of steroid to help the stent bond in the artery.
I had to return each month for a health check,blood tests etc.At the end of 6 months I had another angiogram to see how my stent was settling in.
It was an intersting trial, helping to shape future developments.
I often joke that instead of giving money to BHF,they had my body instead!
I had a stent fitted in Oct 2009.At my pre assesment meeting I was asked if I would like to take part in a drugs trial concerning stent rejection.
This was called the STARS programme, organised by James Cook Hospital in Mbro and the main hospital in Edinburgh.
They were concerned that a percentage of stents fitted were being rejected by the persons artery.
They had to recruit 400 people who lived locally and had not had a heart attack.
I qualified for this and after my stent op was sent home with bottles of pills that i had to take each day for around a month.
It seems they were some kind of steroid to help the stent bond in the artery.
I had to return each month for a health check,blood tests etc.At the end of 6 months I had another angiogram to see how my stent was settling in.
It was an intersting trial, helping to shape future developments.
I often joke that instead of giving money to BHF,they had my body instead!
I had a big one at 38. Stemi anterior, complete blockage to left ventricle whilst kickboxing. I managed to keep going for an hour until they got me into hospital and theatre. Apparently most people don’t last 5 minutes. Signed the paper work and they went straight into my wrist. Said my main arteries looked like a row of tied up sausages!
Think I had something like 7 stents put in over two operations.
Came out of hospital after 4 days feeling great - until I tried to walk any distance. I was left with severely reduced pump action, heart failure and as it’s PH banned from driving for a month!
You need to start walking when cleared to do so. Took me about a month to walk a 1.6 mile track without stopping and after a few more weeks of walking daily I was up to 9 mile. I was running again within 4 months.
Walk, walk, walk!
Think I had something like 7 stents put in over two operations.
Came out of hospital after 4 days feeling great - until I tried to walk any distance. I was left with severely reduced pump action, heart failure and as it’s PH banned from driving for a month!
You need to start walking when cleared to do so. Took me about a month to walk a 1.6 mile track without stopping and after a few more weeks of walking daily I was up to 9 mile. I was running again within 4 months.
Walk, walk, walk!
AlexC1981 said:
Is it possible to get checked to see if your tubes are blocking up? Some sort of scan?
I lost my dad to a heart attack in his early 40s and I'm 38 now.
CT coronary angiograms (CTCA) are a pretty non-invasive but useful tool. Generally only performed on symptomatic patients referred by a cardiologist in the NHS though.I lost my dad to a heart attack in his early 40s and I'm 38 now.
Echocardiograms show a lot, but not specifically if there are any narrowings in the coronary arteries.
schueymcfee said:
I had a big one at 38. Stemi anterior, complete blockage to left ventricle whilst kickboxing. I managed to keep going for an hour until they got me into hospital and theatre. Apparently most people don’t last 5 minutes. Signed the paper work and they went straight into my wrist. Said my main arteries looked like a row of tied up sausages!
Think I had something like 7 stents put in over two operations.
Came out of hospital after 4 days feeling great - until I tried to walk any distance. I was left with severely reduced pump action, heart failure and as it’s PH banned from driving for a month!
You need to start walking when cleared to do so. Took me about a month to walk a 1.6 mile track without stopping and after a few more weeks of walking daily I was up to 9 mile. I was running again within 4 months.
Walk, walk, walk!
Think I had something like 7 stents put in over two operations.
Came out of hospital after 4 days feeling great - until I tried to walk any distance. I was left with severely reduced pump action, heart failure and as it’s PH banned from driving for a month!
You need to start walking when cleared to do so. Took me about a month to walk a 1.6 mile track without stopping and after a few more weeks of walking daily I was up to 9 mile. I was running again within 4 months.
Walk, walk, walk!
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