Cardiological question

[jedusor]

So... if somebody has five stents in his heart already, and a cardiac catheterization reveals four blockages, and they stent two of those... just how bad is that? Is he just telling me he's okay to make me quit worrying? Does anyone know more than I do (roughly nothing) about hearts?

Comments

[kaberett.livejournal.com]

If you really want an answer, I've a friend (a very good doctor) who can give one, but you won't necessarily like it. (I also don't know much.)

[jedusor.livejournal.com]

I'd rather know, regardless of whether I'll like it.

[mh75.livejournal.com]

ok is clearly relative. I don't think that heart blockages can ever be a good thing. On the other hand - stent placement is relatively low impact for the patient (your friend isn't in immediate disability from an open heart surgery here), and okay can mean that he is stable and able to live life day to day. It seems like, statistically, your friend may be more likely to suffer from a catastrophic heart problem than you or I, but, remember that statistics don't inform the individual case - he may live healthily for years to come.

(I know not very much about hearts, not this patient. But i think considering what a 'relative ok' means may be more informative than trying to figure out all the medical details anyway.)

Trust your friend

[1firefly.livejournal.com]

We are all dieing. It is just a matter of time. A perfectly healthy person can be hit by a bus. Enjoy your friends while you have them. Turn your logical mind off and accept what he has told you.

Re: Trust your friend

[elainetyger.livejournal.com]

I agree totally. Life is like Tetris. "Something bad" eventually happens to everyone, worrying about it doesn't delay it, and delaying it doesn't make you a better or worse person. A Buddhist once told me that peace comes not from seeing the glass as half empty or half full, but as already broken.