Originally I had posted my message in the Heart rhythm forum, I thought initially my problem was heart related, because I had a very low blood pressure, after all the reading/searching I have done, and from one answer from a DR, I don’t think what I am experiencing is heart rhythm related.
Please keep in mind that when I do see a DR, I don’t get the opportunity to see the same DR for each visit, I go to a community health facility.
Over the past 3-4 months I have been seen for a repeated swollen gland in my throat on the left side. I don’t have a sore throat, but it gives me an ear ache because of the swelling. They say I don’t have an ear infection. The first visit they prescribed an antibiotic (augmentin). The swollen gland keeps returning.
On July 9 while I was at work, I was sitting at one of the computers helping a customer, at one of the work stations. I started feeling tightness in my chest and feeling a little dizzy. I walked over to another work station and started to have pain the front of my chest, then began to feel dizzy, light headed, and began to sweat. I felt like I couldn’t catch my breath and felt overwhelmingly thirsty, and was nauseated. My co-workers called the EMS, because they thought I was having a heart attack, and while the EMS was in route I had passed out.
When the EMS arrived they took my blood sugar it was 139, and my blood pressure was 60/30's while in the ambulance. They started an IV and did an EKG. I heard the EMS tech give my vitals and believe I heard them say that I had a slight DFib?
On the way to the hospital, the pain I felt was in the front of my chest (under my left breast). It was going to my back, just between my shoulder blade and my spine area. I’ve had the pain in my back for a very long time; just not as intense and severe as this occurrence. I visited a DR previously at the same clinic and was told, it was due to poor posture (probably 3-4 years ago), and so I have always just dealt with the pain.
When I got to the ER they redrew my blood sugar and it was 90. They did a chest x-ray, and wanted to do a cat scan of my head; since I had hit my head, I questioned them about this, because I told them my chest hurt, not my head… They did another EKG and monitored my heart rate which stayed in range between 66-54, BP between 120/93 - 99/59, my BP all my life normally ranges 90's/ 50-60's. They checked my heart enzymes and all of that came back normal.
All said and done, the ER DR gave me a diagnosis of “Vertigo”. (Honestly I feel the dizziness was caused from the low BP, I found a blood pressure chart at http://www.vaughns-1-pagers.com/medicine/blood-pressure.htm and that showed a low BP could cause the dizziness similar to what I had experienced).
I was told from the ER to follow-up with family DR within 1-2 days, I called to make an appointment right away and it was going to be 3 weeks before I could even get into see the nurse practitioner, and even longer to see the DR. So of course I made the appointment to see the nurse practitioner.
I got my records from the hospital, and a cd of the chest x-ray/cat scan that I had from that day. The chest X-Ray showed a probable small infiltrate in the right lower lobe (which the ER DR did not mention).
From the blood work that was drawn from when I had my IV in the ambulance
The only thing(s) that shows up on the blood work as highs and lows are:
In CBC
WBC 11.3 (High) (4.0-10.5) normal range
MCHC 32.9 (Low) (33-37)
RDW 15.8 (High) (11.5-14.5)
SEG 39 (Low)
RBC Morphology +1 Anisocytosis +1 Ovalocytes
ATYP LYMPH 3
Everything else was all within normal range.
In Comp Metabolic Panel
Glucose 126 (High) (70-110)
Blood Urea Nitrogen 3 (Low) (5-25)
ALK Phosphate 130 (High) (31-107)
Everything else was all within normal range
I called and asked the nurse at the health clinic about my swollen gland again, and to see what the probable small infiltrate in the right lower lobe was, from the ER report. She said it could possibly be pneumonia.
I got in to see a DR at the clinic for the swollen gland. I took my results I got from the hospital and showed it to the DR, and she told me that everything looked ok, except that I had ATYP LYMPH 3. My lungs sound clear. She said that having the ATYP LYMPH “indicated” that I had mono. At that time too, I told her about a new symptom that had developed on my left side under my rib. It doesn’t hurt, it just gives an odd sensation when I walk and bend, and it is slightly swollen. I also was asked if I was ever diagnosed with high blood pressure from the nurse at the check in, because my BP at that time was 140/80, which was the highest I’ve ever seen it. It’s always been 90's/ 50-60's. This DR said I should come back when I don't have any swelling in my gland and get blood work re-done to rule out lymphomas?
I then go home and search about mono, yes I’ve heard about it throughout the years as the kissing disease. I’m 39 years old, married, mother of 4 daughters…
I searched online to see if there would be any type of symptoms that I experienced that would explain what happened to me, if I had mono, and any heart related symptoms.
I found that, there are rare severe complications with mono that include destruction of red blood cells (hemolytic anemia) and inflammation of the sac surrounding the heart (pericarditis). It says, if there is enough fluid in the pericardia sac, there may be enough pressure on the outside of the heart to prevent it from beating adequately to push blood to the body and lungs. The pressure within the sac itself needs to be higher than the pressure within the heart chambers, but symptoms gradually progress as the heart function is compromised. http://www.medicinenet.com/pericarditis/article.htm.
All of this went away as quickly as it arrived. A day or two later my ER visit I had black stools that lasted a day. Could I have had some type of internal bleeding from this? It is all gone now…
The information I’ve read about pericarditis, and I what experienced on July 9th sounds exactly what I experienced. Shortness of breath, low blood pressure, even how I felt the pain in the front part of my chest going to my back between shoulder blade and spine. Possibly even the chest x-ray that showed a probable small infiltrate in the right lower lobe is connected to this too, because it said it is possible to have fluid back up in the lung from pericarditis. I read other stories at http://www.medicinenet.com/pericarditis/discussion-203.htm, all of this sounds as similar, as to what I experienced.
A few days later I go in for the follow up for the ER visit, with the nurse practitioner. I was hoping to get answers and share what I had found, that would help to explain what had happened to me. The Nurse practitioner that seen me said, she looked things over all was ok, examined me and said I had ear wax in my right ear, and said “that earwax could cause my dizziness I had felt!”
I said, what does that have to do with my heart? Because my BP was 60/30. She said she looked the report over and it said there was no problem with my heart.
I told her about the new symptom I had, my stomach swelling on my left side just below my rib, and said they could only see someone for one complaint per visit.
I didn’t tell her about the information I had found about pericarditis, just because the vibe I was getting from her, Since she wouldn’t even hear me about my stomach swelling and their rule about one issue at a time! She did press on my stomach, and it doesn’t hurt to the touch and that was as far as she went with it. She asked if the other DR had prescribed an antibiotic, which she didn’t because it would be a viral infection.
I wanted to see if anyone had any suggestions for me, because honestly I am not buying the "earwax" caused your problems, answer I recieved...