All my symptoms blamed on GERD - Need to Rant Sorry

Hi Robert, I do have osteoarthritis in my neck from many years of typing and I too am putting the tingling down to that and trying not to think of it as being heart related. My tests results are back and I have posted them further up. The trouble is so many things have similar symptoms and constantly worrying about it starts to to take over your life. I now have some answers so am trying to calm down and live my life. Cardiologist does not seem worried so that is something. Have a good day

Incidentally, we have a lot of deer around us.  Deer tics are the prime suspects in his case.

I've twice in the last three years had a small red puncture mark on my shin after having been on the South Downs but wearing trousers. Each time my shin bone had periods of sharp pains but I did not get the typical rash around the bite and did not have any fever.

At the present time I have had headaches for some months and increasing numbness initially in my left foot and lower leg that is now starting on the right and is now being investigated by a neurologist and my long term  irregular heart rate/ectopic bare is now diagnosed as  AF/ tachy bradycardia and I need a pacemaker. 

Reading Forums like this puts ideas into ones head.

  

A bg thanks and high five....  David....at our Uncles during summer vacations, his farm had plenty of deer, rabbit, fox, turkey, and other transporters of "ticks"....at the  swimming hole, at  the end of the day, we got "hosed" down, an inspection, then "suds from fells naptha soap"...then hosed again...any little buggers if any, were gone (poison ivy too)...Uncle's mutts got same treatment but with very close ear inspections...every once in a while we'd get a "beaner"..in our head, hidden by a lotta hair...no lyme in this  area, near the Mississippi River, Illinois and Kentucky. We were told lyme "could be around" but local dr said only in upper north east.

Ticks breathe thru their "annus", suds work to get them out...we didn't want to leave any parts of them in our skin...happened a few times...and off to local clinic for a "dig out". Our neighbor once showed a "bulls eye" on his upper right back shoulder parents thought a bee or wasp sting......Uncle very sternly told parents to get him to clinic and antibiotics..think they complied.

I suspect (a huge guess) that some people do get lyme ticked but for another issue were prescribed antibiotics which could have either resolved the infection or supressed it...while most infections manifest quickly in days weeks...some for  months and years before a full blown infection appears. NIH has a web site dedicated to Lyme.

do you suspect headaches are cardio related? The neuro if a good one will sort out your legs ...one red puncture in one leg or multi in both legs? If only one and your experience of numbness is now in both...less likely this has anything to do with lyme. But do a "google Scholar" or pub med search...numbness is "sensory neurons" vs motor,

Hope you get the PM soon...its one of the best advances in medicine since JSalk. Have two family seniors..one 77, the other 92...both can kick butt since having the PM.

Hi,

I get regular headaches. The headaches are sinus related.

The Acidic reflux causes post nasal drift and mucus to fill the Sinus cavities in your face and head. The resulting pressure causes pain.

Try some anti Sinus pain medication the next time it happens to see if the head ache goes away. Usually the pain is over one eye, and sometimes below in the cheek.

Regards

Robert Accardi

Priority 1 Design

Of course it does and we're all susceptible to that aren't we ?

I have actually posted versions of this on several Forums. It was a red puncture mark on each shin about a year apart. The headaches started at the end of October at a time when my BP was quite high and the occasional numbness I had in my left foot worsened when wearing shoes but it did not really inconvenience me.

In January my GP referred me to the neurologist (over 6 months to get an appointment with each)  a podiatrist and an orthopedic consultant.

I also mentioned it at the hypertension clinic. They gave me a good physical examination without fining any problems but referred me for a head CT scan that was normal apart from some comments on my sinuses.

I have a very sensitive vagus nerve and went into AF for a few days in January after a DRE by a urology nurse. Previously in AF after heart valve replacement in 2012 and a colonoscopy in 2013. I was prescribed Bisoprolol again at that time. At the end of March and another BP surge to 236/114 and AF again put me in hospital for two days. Both settled without any treatment but a 7 day ECG was arranged  for late May.

After having that a cardiologist phoned to say that I had tachy bradycardia with missed heart beats of up to three seconds and needed a pacemaker as a matter of urgency.

Bisoprolol had made me light headed, sweaty, dizzy  and with pre syncope and suddenly it all worsened at the beginning of June when I became unsteady on my feet when standing and walking. The numbness in my foot changed to a lack of feeling and I was unable to cope going down hills or slopes,  changes of surfaces and the camber when crossing roads. It was as if my brain was not communicating with my left foot. I had one bad fall and several near misses and became unable to walk without holding on to my wife’s hand or arm. 

My GP did another ECG that was no different from previous one and some blood tests that were normal.The neurologist was very thorough and I spent 45 minutes with him. He asked for a head MRI as it would show more than the earlier CT scan. I had that last week and am waiting for the result. He asked for 11 different blood tests (nothingthat would be for Lymne disease) including a genetic one for hereditary motor sensory neuropathy and Charol-Marie Tooth disease in particular and nerve conduction tests that I will have next week.  I would much sooner he had arranged an MRI of my back and checked for neuropathy caused by nerve compression. Although there may be some numbness when at home it instantly worsens as soon as I put shoes on and go out. I stopped the Bisoprolol about three weeks ago and the other side effects fairly quickly went. The pacemaker will be implanted on July 17th.

 

Hi Derek,

First thought…you are some trouper.

Sorry, didn’t know about your previous postings and know it’s a PIA having to repeat stuff. .

 Quite pleased the PM is sooner than later..know your up to speed regarding the probability of its need to be fine tuned over the first several weeks.

Hope you post the results of your MRI on this thread.

 At this stage …I would not include Lyme as a “probability” , unless

Lyme was quite prevalent in that specific area…I am not familiar with the area.

 I don’t know why one with a sensitive VN gets AF via a routine DRE? Help please.

Vaguely know the acid reflux VN  connection.

I gather  the neuro ruled out a motor neuron connection?…no EMG ( measures muscle electrical conduction…no NCT (nerve connection test. Measures how quickly responses).

With the way you describe your left foot being without feeling, ..you also stated a vague delay or lack of communication from your brain to your foot?  I’d immediately request an EMG./NCT  (nerve conduction study  NCT/NCS same test/study)

 

 

 

Hi ann and nick. your first paragraph could've dropped right out of a Tom Sawer story (or was it Huckleberry Finn) 

It reminded me of my carefree times as a kid.

The thing is, your uncle knew these things because he knew what was in the environment. Over here, Lyme is just coming onto peoples radar as it's spread and more cases are reported in the papers or anecdotally

Trouper, you don't know the half of it for my near brushes with death.

Lyme is quite prevelent on the South Downs in Sussex. FRm local paper in 2011: 'The Health Protection Agency says cases of Lyme disease are on the rise and areas such as the South Downs and parts of West Sussex are particularly at risk'

It is quite common to get AF after the vagus nerve is stimulated during a colonoscopy. During it my BP went down to 40/29 and heart rate to 30 bpm. After pumping drugs into me it gradually righted but at my first exertion I could feel the irregular heart rate.

It is also documented after a DRE. That tme when I checked my BP in the evening it was down to 114/67 and was erratic over the next few days and my BP monitor was constantly showing an irregular heart rate.

You missed my reference to nerve conduction tests for next week. 

If its common for a standard invasive colonoscopy to induce AF or a drop in HR, perhaps those who have AF or sensitive VN ought to consider a virtual colonoscopy.

Checked with our endoscopy center RN staff and received " its rare and if its an issue,  it would be coordinated with the anesthologist, GP, Cardiologist, surgeon and staff"

..could be those who meet this criteria are sent elsewhere like to a virtual colonoscopy center or Hospital.

Mentioned DRE and AF to Nick…relayed an ER case of a 29 year old male athletic build who presented with rapid AF claimed he was just walking home  had no known cardio or other disorders, put on a 5mg metoprolol drip, follwed by a DRE to rule out bleeding. Immediately post DRE HR dropped to normal,..was put on 12 hour observation  discharged and 3 month follow up asymptomatic..

DRE's are quite common here  be they performed by GP or Urologist...routine BPH or annual physical.

Think to have blocked the words  “nerve conduction tests next week”… looking for EMG or NCT…

 Why so very long for you to finally get a PM? You say long term AF condition,

And a valve replacement back in 2012. I believe a permanent PM is strongly recommended for an AVR? And when AF is not controlled by medications? What am I missing?

Know you’ll be in great cardio shape with a PM and no further “bb’s

Steve Shackel has a web page and a “very long and unnecessary plus redundant explanation of Lyme” but it is “informative”.In our west coast area, UCSF and Stanford have Lyme Centers.

 

You are in the US. In the UK we wait at our peril for the NHS to treat us. I waited 54 weeks for my AVR after first cardiology appointment. My aortic stenosis had been picked up two months prior to that when I had an examination at a London hospital to see if I was a suitable candidate for renal denervation treatment for my hypertension.

My friend in Baltimore waited three weeks from diagnosis for his AVR.

The Cardiologist who phoned me said 3/4 weeks for my pacemaker. When I later phoned the hospital I was told that no gets one in less than 7/8 weeks.

I went to A&E as soon as I went into AF after the colonoscopy as I believed that if done within three days I would not need to be on Warfarin before having a cardioversion. I got nowhere there and phoned an NHS  cardiologist I had seen previously and had an appointment with him the next day. It was14 weeks before I had the cardioversion.

I asked my GP to refer me privately for a virtual CT colonoscopy but he wanted to save me money and managed to get a colonoscopy  as an NHS patient in about three weeks. 

Surgeon before AVR sad that I might need a pacemaker but after surgery that it had not been required but I went into AF about day three. When the first cardioversion did not work it was a about a three month wait for the next one while on Warfarin, Amiodarone and Bisoprolol.

Here nurses now do DRE along with flow tests and retention scans at initial urology appointments. I have a prostate that grows like a weed. I had GL PVP when it was 75 grams in 2005 and Holmium laser in 2013 when it was 130grms.

Now it is 50grms but not causing a problem. Obviously since 1995 when prostate symptoms became apparent I have many DRE, TRUS and a couple of biopsies and only this year’s one caused a problem. I guess once you have AF that you are then susceptable. 

Can only hope someone above is looking out for anyone in this kind of health care system.

BPH look into " " will pm you with this Chinese cocktail. Has scientific evidence.

can hardly wait to see you next yeAR in bright yellow at tour de france.

I did a long reply on the state of our NHS but their Gods must not have liked it and it got lost.

Thank you I had not heard of that one (Qianliening) on Forums or NG's. Finasteride caused me to start growing breasts but not hair in the short time I was taking it.

I'll em donclaudio, says wife's boobs

deflated after major abdominal surgery.

He is taking Q only noticeable plus much better stream.two weeks plant extracts can take time.

The big problem here is parents not teaching nor screening. It's treatable when treated quickly. Steven Shackel claims a US company is developing a vaccine.but cannot find the info.May check with our LI'me center in Palo Alto, california.

Derek, here is a reply from DonClaudio

"Urologist prescribed (Flomax) did not use because it crosses the BBB, have been on (Qianliening) one capsule for 3 weeks, dosage is supposed to be 3 capsulex x 2 daily...while the abstracts clearly show no adverse effects, I'm cautious.

My stream improved within a week, and has been quite good or almost normal...skip to my loo night time was 2 to 3, now 1...I also have been taking 50mg of zinc gluconate daily for years. I have copper plumbing, from street (1"), into house (3/4") and to outlets (1/2"). Green tea (Itoen) bag gives me frequency but if I take second cup (diluted) not a problem...could take (EGCG) for the green tea benefit.

Getting the (Qianliening) from China was as difficult as you getting a PM...waiting to chat with Suguru in Tokyo, will ask if kanzo has identical or similar product."

Last time we were in China we met two young doctors in Guilin. She did traditional Chinese medicine he did acupuncture. They asked if we needed any treatments. We were never sure if they were just out for their evening stroll along the river or touting for business. Both had perfect English. They must have been doing very well as he was immaculately dressed in Western (not cowboy) style and she was straight out of Vogue.

At the moment I am still fairly happy with my growing prostate apart from my variable flow and three times a night (of the wrong thing). I don't have any urgency or retention and only need to go about three times during the day and that has been the case after each procedure.

My January cystoscopy did not show any problems. I commented that my prostate had been 130 grams before the operation and that the surgeon had said that he had removed ‘a lot of tissue’. If it is now 50 grams how much has it actually grown. He regards 50 grams as not all that big. Looking at the operation notes he said that 36 grams had been removed. I queried how come 130 – 36 and it is now 50? He said that 36 was the tissue retrieved and sent for analysis but that a lot is vaporised by the laser.

I still have an unopened litre bottle bottle of Tincture of Saw Palmetto that I have ever felt the need to open.  

Guilin, could be China's best..think President Nixon's meeting place with Chinese officials.

Donclaudio has a TCM/MD good friend in Jinan.

his 15 year cystoscopy showed some cystitis.splashed with DMSO. may currently have resurfaced.. (AZO) has't helped. Maybe he should visit Guilin and Jinan.his current Uro knows less than he does..Taiwanese too..probably would fail their med license exams.same with his primary care dr. DC mentioned his 4 year tick encounter, said if ticked he had 12 to 48 hours before lyme transmission??DC corrected timing..simply lyme toxin is in ticks salivary..therefore very much sooner..maybe "bulls eye" doesn't develop before 24 48 hours but not transmission. DC is in a new HMO, will escape it first opportunity.Most San Francisco residents believe Lyme is only in the US east coast? A new Lyme toxin discovered in San Mateo county, next to SF.

Actually you could buy a lot in Guilin including fake art. The artists there would reproduce any artists works for you.

Strange a few weeks after that we were in Malta when Bush and Gorbachev declared the end of the Cold War in 1989 at their summit off shore on board the cruise ship Maxim Gorky.

Here in Sussex the ticks are on the sheep on the Downs. The more prevalent area is the New Forest where there are a lot of Dee..     

Never been to Malta..sniffle.

Been to quite a few cities in  China, not Guilin nor Jinan... once at the US Consulate in the South....where adoptions were taking place Caught ambiasis first trip to   Thailand...no Yakult at the time..next trips purchased the yakult at Narita airport...friends in Surin Thailand tell me its readily available everywhere now, even in Mymar.

New forest?  what type of tree/s? flora in general? DC has a new 600 acre  forest of Austrilian Eucalyptus next to his house... ...they grow like invasive weeds he says thumps out navtive flora.

Sussex, is this where the  sheep at one time had  "prion type disease"?

Scrapie was quite common in sheep so possibly in Sussex sheep at one time. The New Zealand sheep population are descended from ones exported to there from Sussex.

From the forestry commission:

The New Forest also contains many lovely old trees that are reaching 200-300 years in age. Such trees include oak, beech, yew and holly and most are concentrated in the ancient and ornamental woodlands, although some can also be found within the inclosures.

We went to Malta for two weeks. By the end of the first week there was nothing else left to see though things were livened up by the earth moving for us in the night and bits falling of the Preluna Towers hotel because of an earthquake in Sicily.

The Village Fiestas are worth going to with massive exploding, deafining  and colourful home made fireworks.

Interesting Derek,

There is no scarpie (prion disease) in New Zeland, nor Australia...several parts of EU and here in the US do have "sporadic" prion disease.

Prion...implicated in MND (AD, PD, ALS), in the animal world...mad cow etc...deer, elk, sheep, and goat.

Misfolded proteins..and a cascade of motor neuron destruction, like a row of dominos. A Brit once described it as "the leaky roof syndrome".

I would suspect soil contamination and/or composition..more likely a combo...goats and sheep do ingest soil, cows too but less so unless grass roottings are loose.

 I'm drifting away from the focus of this thread...my rant belogs elsewhere...like in an MND forum.

More important, looking forward to this weeks nerve conduction tests, and 11 day count down....ann

 

Plenty of soil in the New Forest but little on the South Downs as it is chalk with a very thin layer of top soil. 

MIght be a problem to get to the nerve conduction tests as it is a 40 minute train journey and a strike is threatened to start that afternoon (Sunday 12th)

Since I was around 12 years old, I have "detested" strikes and "boycots".

They only cause trouble for others...While strikers may have "legitimate gripes" they have other options...broaded their employment opportunities....our Pres Regan stopped this nonsense "once" when Air Traffic Controllers chose to walk off...he replaced them with the US Military controllers...quick ending. One of my favorite Presidents was JFK but he screwed the public by allowing government employess to unionize. (was by Executive Order not passed by congress because even with his party controlling congress they would not have approved it for fear of losing votes...Obama is doing EO's more than any previous pres in history)

I suppose there is no alternate transport? We have several options..we have a medical transport from home to clinic within 50 miles..$3.75 each way, bus (would take an inordinate amount of time), accommodating neighbor with a car, no subway nor train service where we live. There are shuttles too but we are not sufficiently funded as they could cost about $3 per mile an 80 mile round trip...

Can only hope strike is delayed/resolved or you find reasonable alternative...(I often yet think about those red punctures on your shins)

Air traffic controllers, that must have been 1981? We were flying Laker to New York and expected a big delay but we took off in time. IRA protestors were burning effigies of Maggie in the streets during our stay protesting at the death of hunger striker Bobby Sands.

When we were in DC we saw Reagan pass by in a cavalcade on his first outing after being shot. The Pope was also shot during that time.

The alternative by bus would not be possible on a Sunday for the second part of the journey. 

Sorry bout alternatives...wow...you've been around the bush more than sputniks....good stuff.

Maggi and Winston, two of the 3 or so best in the world.

Have a huge work project today outisde...in our entryway...leveling concrete walkway, laying combo of quartzite/slate tile...4 ft x 23ft...want to see to it a tad better or at least as good as the Aborigines would have it done. Tossed the pro contractors...rented a jack hammer and removed their ankle breaking work. Issued a report with photos to local Contractor referral website.

 

Reagan also stopped the Amtrak strike. My bride to be and I were on our way to get married in Vegas. We flew into Toronto, intending to take a leisurely trip to Vegas via Chicago by train. But when we arrived in Toronto, we learned that Amtrak engineers were on strike so our USA Rail passes were useless. Reagan did break the strike a week later.

In the meantime, we had to get to Vegas and since the trains were on strike we couldn't get a flight (and anyway, we were students on a  budget). So we took the Greyhound (well 3 of them actually), from Chicago, all the waydown to Nevada via Des Moines. That strike was just bad timing for us LOL

Sorry, Amtrak plus already passes..engineers could care less all strkers feel the same..blame the employer....but Grehound should have got you toLV quicker but with inconveniences.

Did you get married in LV? If so where on the strip?

We have a small 1 bdrm condo off the strip.in chinatown, walking distance to Gold Coast, Rio, and The Palms..rented..too bloody hot ..for us..tripple digits F..daily 108F last week.

Just fine in the winter...need to activate the fireplace or furnace.

Had completely forgotten the amtrak strike.

We have had around eight trips to the States and two to Canada always travelling Trailways, Greyhound and Amtrak in America.

First time in Vegas we got on a local bus that had been parked outside the Flamingo Hilton in the sun. Ow! the plastic seats were red hot.

My biggest mistake was to think that it was always hot at Grand Canyon. The first time we went was in early September and it was hot. The next time was in April and we went up by bus from Williams. Fog was blowing down the Canyon and by the time we had checked into our hotel it was snowing and bitterly cold. I had not taken it that we were about 7,000 feet up.

It had earlier snowed a bit in Reno and a lot in Salt Lake CIty although people still sat out all night to get into the Temple on the Sunday morning.. Someone who had travelled on from there in the bus was snowed up for thirty six hours in Cheyenne. 

   

Little White Chapel 24 years ago last week (we're still going strong). Stayed in the Dunes (the one that got blown up at the end of Casino movie) Also spent a couple of days at the El Cortez on Fremont Street, (famous for it's breakfasts) and the eventual heartburn (to keep on-topic) Englebert was on at Balleys, Freda Payne at Ceasars.

we went straight from the LWC to  see Les Follies Berger at I think the Tropicana

My wife is a long time Engelbert fan from his first TV appearance on Sunday Night at the London Palladium. When we were in Salt Lake she heard on morning TV that Engelbert was opening at Balleys. An hour later we were on the bus to Vegas and at a ringside table that evening.   

On our first trip to Vegas I ended up on stage at the Aladdin as the magicians assistant being me I did my best to screw up his act:-)    

Congrats 24 years...that's something "special". The Little White Chapel is still on Las Vegas Blvd..or twaz the last time we were on the blvd...near the Fremont..kinda....go south on LV Blvd to Spring Mtn, head west..and Chinatown. We all love Englebert...and back 24 years he was "it"..much like the now "Celine D".

These LV buffets are "artery blockers, and introduce one to all kinds of digestive issues" DBT1,2,3 and the LV Physicians have a big percentage of their portfolio in PPI stock. btw...Chinatown is no different, only one "hole in the wall" that has decent food...and they don't have Englebert nor Petula on their in house music...made the suggestion but young gal looked at me and said "who'??...chose to use (chenle and niu xinxin)....big smile on her face??

 

8 times eh?  wow not even the sputniks hit all of the places youve traveled......You and David put me in shame... I've been to Wellingborough ONCE round robin from Heathrow then onto Oslo.

Where you've been....Visited brother at  USAF base in Cheyenne, blizzard conditions, deflated tires and continued onwards...been all thru places you mention..several  times, have family in Reno..and have been stuck in Lake Tahoe with roads closed due to blizzard winds... we use Enterprise Rent a Car, weekly "deals".. with unlimited miles..out of LV towards The Grand Canyon, first is Searchlight...US95 So....can fall asleep behind the wheel  4 lane, quiet, straight as an arrow until you reach California, then road surface changes and your awake and alert, checking your dental fillings.We sometimes head  out of LV North towards SLC on I 15 and to the Flamming Gorge (Green River) Manila Utah, Rock Sprngs.Wyoming nearby, would have gone to Jackson Hole to visit the Ethno Medicine Research Institute...but its a rough 4 plus hour drive..

Google. dr paul allen cox,ted

He is the founder of the ethno medicine institute at Jacksonhole

Derek, too bad Iphone not available back then, a once in a liftime stage event with husband a star player....only once did we get a "close up" at a LV show, and that was because of an offer from a "high roller" friend from Oklahoma.

 

You probably already know this well but perhaps others who are following may not.

DonClaudio reminded me that AF patients even those with a PM.. and in particular in ages over 50 must be prudent while lifting or even sitting on the commode…

He lost his cousin to MI, age 65, was in his field to “crank ” his tractor when his wife saw him collapse…his daughter an Infection Control Expert had warned him many times not to hold his breath while lifting anything heavy or when starting his tractor

Increase of intrathoracic pressure by forcible exhalation against the closed (or significantly closed) glottis. The maneuver causes a trapping of blood in the great veins, preventing it from entering the chest and right atrium. When the breath is released, the intrathoracic pressure drops and the trapped blood is quickly propelled through the heart, producing an increase in the heart rate (tachycardia) and the blood pressure. Immediately after this event a reflex bradycardia ensues.  Many die from it.

My wife had been miserable for a few days due to a gum infection but my performance brought a smile to her face. Don't know why but she would not go to an American dentist NOR even a Mexican one when we had crossed over from El Paso. Could have had a good deal there as the Banks were closed after a massive devaluation.

Glad that you did not tell me about the lifting two weeks ago. We had a storage cupboard in the basement of our buiding that we cleared out as we got another one on our landing. It had to taken along a corridor and up a flight of steps and through the foyer to get to the lift. 

I waited ten minutes and then took my BP 108/71 76 then half an hour later 118/53 64.

To reduce lifting I have just built a new PC with a Versa G1 case that only weighs 10lb to replace my massive 27 lb Antec 900 case.

I would think a short hold and release with out taking in a big deep breath would be OK.remember kids in 'my time used to do a lotta dumb things..like hypervenilating then with thumb in mouth BLow till they pass out.

My implant dentist is Mexican. Husbands dentist is Chinese, sister in law Japanese,

Rest of family members Jones, smith,woodward etc..

Phase I"Lserine" Trial cvompleted no published reoort yet.