Is 10% really that little?

The doctors said that my heart is doing okay for now but it will soon (between one and ten years) rapidly go backwards if nothing is done. To clarify; I was born without a link between my right atrium and right ventricle. The doctors, when I was very little, made the atrium (that's supposed to pump the blood into the ventricle, which on turn pumps the blood to the lungs) pumt the blood right into the lungs, bypassing the right ventricle completely.

Now, the right atrium has swollen because of the increased pressure on it as it's doing more than it's meant to. This in the end (between one and ten years) will cause serious problems, once those are starting, the path downhill will be steep and unstoppable.

They now want to perform another big open heart surgery to bypass the right part of my heart entirely; making the blood run from the organs where it has given away its oxygen right back into the lungs, from there back into the left part of the heart, and back to the organs.

This will be a risky operation. There is a 10% chance that big problems will arise, resulting in my death. I'm fucking scared. I don't wanna die. I've been living a happy life and I don't want it to end so soon. God fucking damn it.

They have given me time to think about if I want to do the operation 'prematurely' or when the problems are arising. However, they've made clear that the risks will be much bigger once my heart's started to protest against the pressure upon it. A heart transplantation might be needed.

To complicate things a bit, the recovery time of te operation will be 3 to 4 months - if I'm lucky. During this I will not be able to pay attention to my study. I don't have the money to fail a year. Now, to some the choice would be clear, but you have to realise that to me, following this study (archaeology) is kind of making my childhood dreams come true. I've always wanted to be an archaeologist. And it's turned out to be even better than I've ever expected.

I'm at a loss. I'll ask around if there's some kind of absolution, if something can be done. This isn't my fault, and this is big. I hope they can arrange something.

And the 10 fucking percent keep gnawing at my brains. Fuck. Only now I realise how much a tenth really is.

Right now I wish I had some heaven to believe in.

 

Just have faith..
I'm sure you'll be fine..

Feel better soon, hun..

 

shit man *hugs*

a heaven to believe in eh? well no i can't offer you a heaven, i can offer you my believe which is that you are finally free from your body

10 percent. damn.


*sips blue taksi*

hold on man
keep on keepin' on
do what you feel is the right thing
and it'll become the right thing.

 

Dude if it were me id run all day with only a ten percent chance, your looking at it all wrong.

Its a 90 percent chance all will be fine......da!

 

Okay....Your university should, in the event of your having surgery and needing absolutel recovery time, be able to put a hold on your studies without any consequences whatsoever on your education. They do this all the time with soldiers that are sent to war, and they even did it with my mother when she couldn't finish a semester due to health problems. Talk to your dean of student services as well as your counselor.

Also, flip that percentile on its head. There is a 90% chance that you're going to be just fine. 90%!! Not to mention, if they do this surgery now, while your heart is still strong, you have a better chance of recovering than if you were to wait until things were out of hand.

Hon, keep your spirits up. I know you're not a Christian, but this is something that every religion or person should believe and keep close to heart: A joyful heart is good medicine. Don't stress too much about this, keep your stress level down, and BE HAPPY...You'll be fine. Laughter and smiling do more to help make healing faster than any other type of method that medical science knows about.

 

I hope you'll get better man ..

 

i wish i had the words of wisdom to give you...it pains me that i don't ...i can give you my prayers, positive energy, and thoughts... it's not much I know.. I'm sorry..

 

You have a cost / benefit curve to look at - over time two things are going to happen your right heart is going to continue to grow bigger (hypertrophy) which is bad. However, at the same time medical procedures are going to improve.

You said "They now want to perform another big open heart surgery to bypass the right part of my heart entirely; making the blood run from the organs where it has given away its oxygen right back into the lungs, from there back into the left part of the heart, and back to the organs." will this not put the total work of your circulation on your left heart. What will be the effect of that - what will be your stamina and endurance after the surgery?
I think you have a condition that will require surgical intervention at some point in time. The question that you have to decide is when that point is and if you are getting the very best operation by the very best surgical team.
I would use at least a month becoming an expert on the problem you have now - the procedure they want to do - the likelihood of other procedures being in the experimental stages - you might want to wait for one of them - and all about hospitals and surgical teams. As Hippyfreek2004 pointed out so well your university will work with you. You need to work on becoming an informed consumer. You should not take any healthcare professional's word (including mine) as being gospel. Check it all out for yourself.
Good luck - keep us informed if you have time - and ask for help if you need it.

 

Hell jeah!

Aww thanks Lisa, and everybody, for the kind words and yeah you're right, I've been looking at it from the wrong way, but you know, I was really shocked when I heard it and shit, and really been thinking and well yeah, I guess it had never in my life occurred to me that I could just die, you know, that seemed to be something for the far-away future with a long, happy, safe life behind me. Nobody in my close family or circle of friends has died yet so I guess this was what shook me awake to the mortality of the human body.
And the indeed not that huge percentage - and the operation itself - was far larger than my parents and I had expected.

I of course intend the surgery to be done as quickly as possible since the odds are only getting worse. I'll have to arrange something with my study and have them inform me at the best tactics if I don't want to spend a year longer in college.

Well anyway, I'm pretty much cheered up now and shall impale some christians to celebrate.

 

Though not necessarily also in this department of medical science, and when I'm waiting for better technology or knowlegde among the doctors on my case, it might be too late.

I asked this question as well, but the doctor said there would be no more strain on the left half of the heart than there is now, and assured me that there would be no negative consequences if everything goes all right.

I'll do my best to do some research on it, thanks for the advice on that one, it's really helpful.

 

*hugs*

you gonna be fine man, better believe me

 

I was born with a minor heart problem -- I was what was called a "blue baby" in those days -- I don't know what the cause was. To add to that, I have a history of many strep infections as a child, which is said to lead to heart problems in adults. By 40, I began experiencing periods of rapid heart beat. I also had edema, another symptom of heart disease.

At 52 I experienced congestive heart failure, but by then I had also acquired a healthy distrust of even letting doctors know I was ill. They kill you as well as cure you and they won't let you go if they know you have a "treatable" (by them) disease. Good luck trying to tell the doctor "no", if that's what you decide. They will twist your arm to get medical treatment, especially if insurance is paying for it, and you should be aware that your good health isn't the only item on their agenda. You will need a will of iron.

Anyway, to get back to me at 52 with my heart problems and loathing of doctors. I took whacking big quantities of all the vitamins and minerals, natural antibiotics echinachea and colloid silver, and especially large quantities of ubiquinone (also known as vitamin q-10) and Vitamin E. Google up "ubiquinone heart disease". In fact, I came up with my regimen by searching for alternative heart disease remedies on the net. It worked -- the rapid heartbeat, edema, breathlessness, lack of energy are all gone. I still have to take ubiquinone, you can't stop taking it once you are better cos your body/heart gets used to having it, but I feel fine and have almost no more heart problems (still an occasional fluttering that lasts less than a minute, but I can live with it).

So best wishes to you on your decision. If I were you, I would wait and continue to live an extra-healthy lifestyle and avoid doctors (but then I do that anyway). If you feel fine now, don't rush in to getting your heart carved up right away. Remember, the doctors could be telling you that based on *statistics*, not on how *you* actually are.

Btw, the word "decimate" is based on one-tenth.

 

We could argue a little about some of your alternative remedies - but never about your attitude toward healthcare. I have been in the field for 40 years and everyone should emulate your good healthy distrust toward “authority”. It is the only way to go. Also any person who can correctly use the word decimate is this day and time is to be admired (wink)

 

I imagine we could -- I toned down some of my more strident and radical opinions about antibiotics -- but you can't argue with the anecdotes my own body was telling me while I was taking them. But, he's not actually sick right now, so I don't think he needs anything more than yogurt to maintain a beneficial bacterial balance.

I also question this so-called "swelling" in his heart. The heart is a muscle. You exercise it, it will get bigger, just like in body-building. If the part of his heart that isn't being used gets smaller and the part that's taking up the extra work gets bigger, why is that a problem? As you say, be very skeptical of what doctors tell you. They only tell you the parts that are likely to get you to make the choice they want you to make. If you like big words, I'm sure you'll enjoy this one -- the percentage of hospital cases that are iatrogenic (caused by doctors) is decimate -- 10%.

Here's a couple links I would recommend to anyone considering putting their trust in what a doctor tells them:

http://www.wrongdiagnosis.com/mistakes/common.htm
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/iatrogenic/

 

I agree with you about the distrust of the medical establishment you have to do your own research. You are also correct about hospital-acquired illness, if any thing I think your number is a little low. However, as far as the heart getting bigger as I understand it here is what happens.
As the heart becomes bigger, it pumps less efficiently. It is not able to beat as fast because it takes longer for a larger organ to fill and empty. You can inflate and deflate a small balloon with one breath very quick in and out. A larger balloon takes several breaths to fill and empty. During the extra time that the heart takes to fill the backpressure on the lungs increases. This pressure causes congestion in the lungs. Thus the term congestive heart failure. The human body has many mechanisms that work fine for a small problem. An athlete uses his heart a lot so it gets a little stronger and bigger. His pulse rate goes down (many runners have a resting pulse in the 50-60 range. However, as this useful mechanism keeps running it becomes a problem in itself. The pulse rate can only get so slow before the oxygen supply drops to the tissues and the heart in turn speeds back up. So this starts a run away cycle of the heart getting bigger and beating faster until some part of the system fails.

 

Hi there pal who is not into taking this 10% risk yet..
If I would be you, I bet i would be confused and lost as well, prolly some panic and stuff which usually comes with the fear.. But as you survived once from this operation, then i bet you will survive twice as well I know yer good boy.. and I know you wann alive and this is what is keeping you alive..
The other thingy to make up yer mind is write down all the + and - points.. as you get so far you can see that taking the operation seems to be just the right thingy.. and you will figure it all out..
And I bet the doctors Will do all the best they can, noone just wants to kill you or have you dead there.. so relaax.. and hei, remember
PEOPLE CARE ABOUT YOU PAL

 

yip!

 

Your going to be fine Man. We need really great loving people like you now on The Earth!