Hospital Discharge
Being a middle-aged woman, I am not vain, but I now have a two-inch cut down the middle of my face. I guess I am glad to be alive, thankful for having an ICD surgically implanted a year earlier; otherwise, I would be dead. Urgent care doctors are not plastic surgeons, so how well was my cut stitched up? The day after I left the hospital, I made an appointment with my dermatologist to see what advice she might have for taking care of my face. She recommended Biocorneum to be applied to my scar twice a day.
Why did this happen? My heart rate was 300 bpm. I was given a consent form to sign to start the process of a likely heart transplant. The first step is to check if insurance will cover the surgery. I was not in the network, so we chose a hospital that we are in since the cost of a heart transplant is very high. So I ask myself, why do I need a heart transplant? I reviewed my discharge papers, the list of my diagnosis was quite lengthy, and it was like trying to make sense of a foreign language that I have not studied.
Discharge Papers
What does this all mean?
Chest pain (resolved): Pain in the chest area that has been treated and is no longer present.
Cardiomyopathy: A disease of the heart muscle that makes it harder for the heart to pump blood to the rest of the body. It can lead to heart failure.
Myocarditis: Inflammation of the heart muscle (myocardium), which can affect your heart's electrical system, reducing your heart's ability to pump and causing rapid or abnormal heart rhythms (arrhythmias).
Hypertriglyceridemia, mild: A condition where there is a mildly elevated level of triglycerides (a type of fat) in the blood, which can increase the risk of heart disease.
Family history of cardiomyopathy: Indicates that cardiomyopathy is present in one or more family members, which may increase your risk of developing the condition.
Family history of AAA: Indicates a family history of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm, a condition in which the lower part of the aorta (the major blood vessel that supplies blood to the body) becomes enlarged and can rupture.
Stress and adjustment reaction: Psychological response to a stressful event or situation, which can cause physical symptoms and affect your mental well-being.
Familial cardiomyopathy: A type of cardiomyopathy that runs in families, suggesting a genetic predisposition to the disease.
Nonischemic cardiomyopathy: A form of cardiomyopathy that is not caused by reduced blood flow to the heart. It can result from a variety of other factors, including genetics, viral infections, or toxins.
Syncope: Temporary loss of consciousness caused by a fall in blood pressure.
Head trauma: Physical injury to the head, which can cause a variety of symptoms, including confusion, headache, and loss of consciousness.
Chronic systolic heart failure: A condition where the heart's ability to pump blood is weakened over time, affecting the systolic function (the phase when the heart contracts and pumps blood out).
ICD (implantable cardioverter-defibrillator): A device implanted in the chest that monitors heart rhythms and can deliver shocks if dangerous arrhythmias are detected, helping to prevent sudden cardiac death.
Ventricular tachyarrhythmia: A condition where the lower chambers of the heart (ventricles) beat very quickly, which can be life-threatening if not treated promptly.
Dilated cardiomyopathy: A condition where the heart's chambers are enlarged and weakened, which can affect the heart's ability to pump blood efficiently.
Ventricular tachycardia: A type of fast heart rate that originates from the ventricles. It can be a serious condition as it may lead to other severe arrhythmias or sudden cardiac death.