Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with angina

The Good and Bad of Living With a Bum Ticker

lekvar — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 11:48:48 -0800

My father's been diagnosed with stable angina, and he's looking for a little reassurance... The longer version:

Yesterday my dad calls me up to tell me that he has stable angina, but it's advanced enough that he's going in for further testing, and likely stents, today. He's a little freaked out about this, not because of the procedure itself, but because he's afraid that having a bad heart is going to affect his over-all quality of life.

If you've got anecdotes about you or your loved ones living with stable angina, I'd like to hear them, especially if they lean towards the "active, vital member of society" end of the spectrum, though all perspectives are welcome.

What could my mystery chest pain be?

UMDirector — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 14:03:29 -0800

Chest Pain Filter: So I continue to have this weird chest pain at the bottom of my breast bone area, perhaps a little down and to the left of my nipple. What could it possibly be? Additional Info:

I do occasionally do push-ups. I don't have enough data yet to see if there is a corrolation.

I do have occasional, most likely stress related, heart palpatations and am on beta blockers for them, yet they still occasionally pop up.

I am 6', 34 years old and probably about 40 pounds overweight, if you believe the gov't. (I am 228)

I have asthma and under so-so treatment for it.

The pain is not continuous, in that its constant. When it does happen however it lasts for hours hurting for a few seconds then going away for maybe 30 seconds to a minute then returning.

Feels like someone is poking me with a needle or like a pinched nerve might feel.

I have been to the cardiologist. They did an ultra sound (echocardiogram), stress test and a halter monitor (the thing you wear for a week). That's how I ended up on the beta blockers.

There does not seem to be much relation between this and running on the treadmill. I have run up to 25 minutes lately with no pain.

I do have high cholestrol, but only very slight elevated blood pressure (124/80)ish.

I do have an upcoming yearly update with the cardiologist...I am hoping for some advice before I go see him.

So what could this current pain be?

Should I get a CT scan for coronary artery disease?

feelinggood — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 12:54:00 -0800

Should I get a CT scan for coronary artery disease or atherosclerosis? My cardiologist wants me to have a CT scan , but after reading this, this, and an article in Consumer Reports on Health March 2007 entitled "Angioplasty: Resist the rush", I am skeptical. BACKGROUND
Note: I live in Toronto (Canada) so neither cost nor a private health plan is an issue here. [Doctor or clinic profit may be.]

I am a 63-year-old male in good health, 5' 7" and 190 lbs, with a 36" waist.
January 2007: routine ECG showed a 3 mm depression in the ST segment. I had no symptoms.
March 2007: blood tests, an echocardiogram, and a perfusion MRI stress test showed that I had "a 70% chance of a 70% blockage" in the left anterior descending artery (LAD). During the stress test I felt a tightness in my chest, as if my rib cage was not big enough for my lungs.
The cardiologist recommended an angiogram and probably a stent. I refused and opted for treatment by exercise and diet.
May 2008: the above tests repeated. Now only a 1.5 mm depression in the ST segment. No symptoms except the tightness during the stress test.

The CT scan seems to me inadvisable for two reasons: 1) it can't tell whether my plaque is going to dislodge or not; and 2) it's the equivalent of about 400 chest x-rays.

Preliminary question: do I have angina (variously described on the internet as ranging from "severe chest pain" to "discomfort")? No one will give me an unequivocal face-to-face answer.

Big question: Should I have the CT scan?

The big a-ha! : I'm afraid to tell the cardiologist I don't want the scan. After all, he's the expert and I read only the NY Times, Life and Consumer Reports; it doesn't seem to be a fair match. Also, I have a feeling that no other cardiologist out there would disagree with him.

(Can anyone recommend a non-invasive, non-interventionist, evidence-based-medicine cardiologist in the GTA?)