Severe effect of dye in Angiography

[santsark]

My uncle had gone for Angiography and had a severe reaction of the dye. He is currently unconsious for more than 120 hrs and in on ventilator support. Doctors are saying his kidneys are not working so they are performing hemodylasis to which there is very minimal improvement. What are the chances of such patient recovering and what sort of treatment is advisable in such situation? I would also like to know could the doctors have done something to prevent this situation? My uncle had no history of allergy.

[ed34]

I am so so sorry to hear about your Uncle. I assume he is unconscious due to heavy sedation which is a usual protocol for ventilators. Many patients panic and try removing
the tube otherwise. Doctors will be administering medication to keep his airways open
and his heart strong. The drawback is the kidney function, or lack of it, because this is
the route for the toxins to be removed from the body. Ask a nurse or doctor to explain
the front panel of the ventilator, it will be valuable for you to see any improvements. The
panel shows how many breaths your uncle is taking for himself and how many the
actual machine is having to do. It also shows the air pressure being used to open the
lungs and doctors gradually reduce this as recovery kicks in. My motto for a ventilator
is if it isn't getting any worse, then it's improving. When you get to the stage of the
ventilator being removed, ask the doctors if they are certain that it isn't too early. Your
uncle will have to be able to cough and breathe for himself. I have seen many patients
come off ventilators too soon and they end up back on them but usually for much longer
the second time. Patience is a virtue with ventilators.
With regards to the dye, there really is no way to tell how a person is going to react to
drugs. We can go all our lives with no reactions to anything and suddenly end up on
life support from a bee sting. The good thing is that he would have been put onto life
support very quickly ensuring his entire body receives adequate Oxygen.
Again, my thoughts go with you on this matter and I really hope he fully recovers soon.
Please let me know how he is doing.