ejection fraction

[pillsux]

I just left the doctors office they told me I have ejection fraction of 40% no blockage when doing a stress test with radiation isotope and also a cat scan. does this mean I will die or can this be fixed

[pillsux]

i would just like to say in my search for information i did a web search in bing for **heart problems from truvada** and med med help site popped up already with links to this post I would be good idea to answers these question instead of unnecessary thought of suspicion so that other users behind me can get good advice when searching through past threads.

here is the results
http://healthquestions.medhelp.org/truvada-and-heart

[pillsux]

oh one last thing i had a problem about 2 months ago when i helped a person that fell in the snow and started bleeding i got blood in my eye and they prescribed me pep medication truvada and isentress can any of these medication be responsible for my current ejection fraction problems.

[pillsux]

just to add to my last statement i have been having this chest pain in the center of my chest when i lean forward and also feeling pain in my legs where my shins are they start to hurt then stop i cannot explain it and also pain the back of my legg that comes and goes it feels like ive been walking for a long time and have a shin splint then it goes away when im sitting and i am able to take a deep breath but that is have this heavy feeling in my chest. also times when my arm starts to feel weak and my hand feels like its has pressure in it with a puffy feeling when i try and close my hand.

[pillsux]

I don't know I went to the emergency room complaining of chest pains this has been 3 times in like 2 months. finally they sent me for a stress test with a radiation isotope and did cat scan to check my artires then told me see my primary doctor. in the emergency room they just told me good new my attires are clean but I have a 40% ejection fraction I actually go for my ecco cardio gram on wed in two days but they told me they don't know what they will see because im overweight. the doctor in the emergency room prescribed me baby aspirin and that was it. i have lysenapril and metformin for my pre-diabetes. but other than that im at a loss for whats wrong that's why im searching the web. i am having a lot of pain in my chest now i don't know if its stress related or am i about to have a heart attack but that is all the information i have now.

[is_something_wrong]

I completely agree with the previous poster. People can live long and happily with an EF of 40%, but a cause needs to be found. Overweight is causing a severe strain on the heart. So is high blood pressure.

You didn't describe your echo, other than your EF. Is your heart hypertrophied? Dilated? What is your diagnosis?

[pillsux]

they gave me lysenapril and metformin to get better I'm at 352 now I'm hoping not to loose weight so I can live longer.. so I can live a normal life with a low EF is what your saying. they also gave me a sleep machine to breath into for sleep apnea.

[pillsux]

they gave me lysenapril and metformin to get better I'm at 352 now I'm hoping not to loose weight so I can live longer.. so I can live a normal life with a low EF is what your saying. they also gave me a sleep machine to breath into for sleep apnea.

[updownleftright]

That's a pretty black and white question you put out there. Ejection fraction simply means how much of the blood your heart pumps out after it fills. A 40% ejection fraction is a bit low. I think 50% is the low point of normal. Things to remember are echos can be affected by many things which can often time lead to a wive variance in EF. I've had mine come back as low as 50, and as high as 65 within the same time period. Your Ef fraction doesn't doesn't mean you will die, but you can't really "fix" a low ejection fraction either. There are however  certain things that you can do to improve it a little, and I think also certain medications that help as well. Exercise is very important to rebuilding the strength of your heart so it doesn't have to work as hard, and so it can pump out more blood with less strain, but only if you've been okayed by your doctor.

Not sure what caused your low Ef fraction to begin with but controlling your blood pressure is crucial so you don't further damage your heart. Limit the amount of sugar (carbohydrates) you consume as more evidence is showing sugar can damage your arteries and cause stiffening which can make your situation worse. Take it one day at a time, check with your doctor about an exercise program and discuss other possible medications and go from there, but this isn't an easy fix. A pill wont solve your problem.