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  • #1

    Pericarditis

    Just got home from the hospital late yesterday. was admitted on Saturday..My upper chest started to feel very sore on Friday night...the next day, it spread across my upper back. it hurt so badly when i just took in normal breaths, but really hurt when taking a deep breath. I was out grocery shopping when it got worse, rushed home and my husband took me to the E.R. they performed chest x-ray, ekgs,echo. The cardiologist there said that he was almost certain it was pericarditis. Was given high doses of Ibuprofen and weening down until Thursday.

    Anyone had this ???
    \"It is not length of life, but depth of life.\"

    Ralph Waldo Emerson
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  • #2
    Re: Pericarditis

    Yes I had it a few yrs before my HCM diagnosis. My chest hurt everytime my heart beat. Went to the ER and of course my ECG was nutso. At first they said it was enlarged heart. Did an echo and determined it was pericarditis. They kept asking me if I had been sick with a cold or anything. I hadn't. But this knocked me off my feet for about 2 weeks.

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    • #3
      Re: Pericarditis

      Cynthia,
      Absolutely, a really bad case of it indeed. New Years Day, 2009-2010, I had pericarditis that resulted in a pericardiocentesis. Here's the rest of the story.
      My event started in mid-December 2009 as a really bad sinus infection. I felt terrible, was running a fever, went to my GP and got a Z-pack and was told that I had a bacterial infection and I should be good-to-go after a round of antibiotics. I told him I was planning to vacation in St. Augustine, FL for the Christmas holidays so he gave me 2 Z-paks (just in case). BTW: Z packs are a 5 day antibiotic regiment.
      After 10 days of misery -- I was sleeping 16 - 18 hours a day, could barely make my way down to the beach to watch everyone else have fun, I went to a local doc-in-the-box who did a chest X-ray and said, "wow your heart sure is big"! He sent me back to the beach house with a more powerful antibiotic and said "if you aren't feeling better in 2 days, come back and see me". Well, I continued to get worse, and got the feeling that this was "really bad", so my wife and I drove home from Florida and went directly to my local heart center. My cardiologist immediately detected a "rub" which is like a heart murmur - its the inner and outer layers of your heart rubbing together every time it beats! I was hospitalized and after 3 days of IV antibiotics, the fever subsided and the docs did a TEE and determined that I had pericarditis. I was immediately scheduled to have the fluid drained (pericardiocentisis) and watched the New Years Day football bowl games in ICU with a tube protruding from my sternum draining fluid from my heart.

      The doctors (including an infectious disease specialist) never determined the cause of my condition and it has never returned.

      I felt like a million bucks within days of getting the infection under control and the fluid drained. I guess I can add to my signature, pericarditis survivor!!!

      Steve
      A/V Heart Block 2009
      Permanent Pacer 2009
      Dx non-obs HCM CCF 2011
      CRT-D 2011
      Listed for H/T UAB 2011
      Dx Cardiac Sarcoidosis 2012
      Heart Transplant UAB 2012

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      • #4
        Re: Pericarditis

        Thanks for your replies....Steve, you went through a lot with this!!! I'm glad it hasn't returned! I had mainly the chest "soreness" and across my upper back. It wasn't stabbing "pains" but hurt SO bad when I just breathed and took it deep breaths especially...the soreness has gone (it's been 4 days), but yesterday I felt SOOO tired and lethargic...called my PCP's office and spoke with the nurse ..told her that I had planned to return to work (today) and she laughed and said "you're out for the rest of the week!" she said they have patients that had taken weeks to feel back to normal. I see him this Friday morning and just have to see what he says...again, thank you for your replies...appreciate it...




        Originally posted by SteveinMadisonAL View Post
        Cynthia,
        Absolutely, a really bad case of it indeed. New Years Day, 2009-2010, I had pericarditis that resulted in a pericardiocentesis. Here's the rest of the story.
        My event started in mid-December 2009 as a really bad sinus infection. I felt terrible, was running a fever, went to my GP and got a Z-pack and was told that I had a bacterial infection and I should be good-to-go after a round of antibiotics. I told him I was planning to vacation in St. Augustine, FL for the Christmas holidays so he gave me 2 Z-paks (just in case). BTW: Z packs are a 5 day antibiotic regiment.
        After 10 days of misery -- I was sleeping 16 - 18 hours a day, could barely make my way down to the beach to watch everyone else have fun, I went to a local doc-in-the-box who did a chest X-ray and said, "wow your heart sure is big"! He sent me back to the beach house with a more powerful antibiotic and said "if you aren't feeling better in 2 days, come back and see me". Well, I continued to get worse, and got the feeling that this was "really bad", so my wife and I drove home from Florida and went directly to my local heart center. My cardiologist immediately detected a "rub" which is like a heart murmur - its the inner and outer layers of your heart rubbing together every time it beats! I was hospitalized and after 3 days of IV antibiotics, the fever subsided and the docs did a TEE and determined that I had pericarditis. I was immediately scheduled to have the fluid drained (pericardiocentisis) and watched the New Years Day football bowl games in ICU with a tube protruding from my sternum draining fluid from my heart.

        The doctors (including an infectious disease specialist) never determined the cause of my condition and it has never returned.

        I felt like a million bucks within days of getting the infection under control and the fluid drained. I guess I can add to my signature, pericarditis survivor!!!

        Steve
        \"It is not length of life, but depth of life.\"

        Ralph Waldo Emerson

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