I want to share some good news!

General
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Hi everyone…I just want to say I had a follow-up echocardiogram and lipid profile this past week and my heart looks good and my lipids are phenominal! (For those who don’t know, I had a 90+% blockage in my right coronary artery and had a 28mm stent installed on August 25.) The doctor put me on Plavix (a med that supposedly helps the stent grow into my artery), daily aspirin, amlodipine and metoprolol for BP, and CRESTOR for cholesterol…the reason I highlight CRESTOR is because I only take 10mg a day–no SEs whatsoever (I got SEs bad from Lipitor a few years ago, that’s when I refused to take a statin)…in a little over 2 months my total cholesterol went from 257, HDL was around 80, LDL was around 160, and triglycerides high (I don’t remember off hand, but above normal). Now my total cholesterol is 174 !!! HDL = 78 (which is good because HDL is happy cholesterol), LDL = 82, and triglycerides = 69. Oh, I continued to take my Ultimate Omega Fish Oil 2,000 mg a day and 100 mg of CoQ10 also.

My blockage might seem irrelevant to PsA, but I’m not sure whether it is or not. When I had really bad inflammation before starting Enbrel, I always felt weak, and would say that my heart just wouldn’t be able to handle feeling like this for many more years. I was sure the inflammation was affecting my heart somehow. Yes, there are other factors, such as eating too much junk food and not exercising enough, oh, and stress at work AND heredity, but I think the inflammation did a certain amount of damage there, too.

I think it would be wise for our doctors to watch our hearts more closely and if anyone has high BP and changes in their EKG it shouldn’t be taken lightly. I was very close to having a severe heart attack, but while I was in the ER I started feeling better because I took an aspirin. Luckily, my BP was high that day and EKG was “off” a little, so my ER doctor did a CT scan which showed there was plaque…she could have just as well said I didn’t need anymore tests and sent me home. I just want you guys to know this in case you ever have weird chest pain and changes in your EKG–hopefully an ER doctor will be as thorough as mine was!

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There is a possible connection, you are correct. Clearly you had additional risk factors but inflammatory arthritis is a risk factor for heart disease. When I presented at my doctors office with an incidence of chest pain and shallow breathing you can bet that they did a full work up on me. I didn’t go to the hospital, although looking back I probably should have. It was late at night and honestly I didn’t want to be bothered.

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That is wonderful news! I think your ability to read your bodies needs and listen to the messages it sends is amazing! Paying attention and connecting dots to cravings and warning signs are key to helping ourselves stay healthy. Like Seenie often says if the dignosis doesn’t fit keep pushing until it it makes sense. If we pay attention to the signals our bodies tell us we can do just that. Thanks for the good news, hurray!!!

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Great news. So happy for you and thanks for sharing

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Thanks, Stoney, Rachael and MacMac. I just hope everyone pays attention to any weird chest pains. With having PsA and frequent shoulder and arm pain, it’s really hard for some of us to know–is it the usual PsA, or something else? It’s tricky to know, but it’s better to get it checked out and be safe, not sorry.

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