Im 28, generally healthy,6 feet tall and about 170lbs. Dont lead a particularly sedentary lifestyle at all, up until a few months ago used to go to the gym 2-3x weekly and run the treadmill and use the eliptical...

However my Moms side of the family has a severe strong early advanced coronary heart disease risk factor. My Grandparents died in their 40's from heart attacks, My Uncle on my Moms side died in January at the age of 52 - autopsy revealed he was a walking time bomb with coronary heart disease.

So anyways in January I was lying in bed and started to get chest pains,racing heart, pounding heart, dizzy, etc... I thought it was from stress. BUT just to be safe I made an appt with my Dads cardiologist (Yes, my Dad also has heart disease, hes 73 though, had a heart attack at 70). The cardiologist was very concerned with my symptoms. He ordered a stress test, echo, and a ultrasound. I completed these tests about 2 weeks ago..

My Dad has his cardiologist appt today with the same dr I go to. The Dr told him that when I go see him next (tomorrow), hes going to break the news to me that I need a stent! My Dad is 73, slightly hard of hearing, and doesnt remember if the dr said if I had a bad valve or artery. But the word stent came up :confused::confused: Im so scared now! Im 28 and need a stent?!

Is this completely unheard of? Is this a sign that Im going to die early like my Uncle and Grandpa? Im freakin out here.

First off i would not get to worked up until YOU talk to the doctor. It is against the law for the doctor to talk about your case with anyone, even your father. Maybe he was mistaken in what he heard.

Adidas0298--This is just one reason why there is a privacy policy HIPPA. I can't believe that the doc gave your father ANY information, strange. My son 27, had heart palps and chest pain, went to the doc and found out he had a 1 in 2 million chance, heart tumor. Ended up that it was just a muscle causing symptoms, but the tumor is real and found kind of by chance. Not to scare you but young people sometimes need preventitive care also. Family risk factors do play a big part as you know. With the advance tech. and heart healthy ways of life and meds available this risk is much much less. You have to do all that you can for the rest of your life to be healthy. I hope that your dad misunderstood what was said. Keep us posted. Good luck to you. FLFLOWERGIRL:)

I went to the cardiologist today. The rear part of my heart isnt getting proper blood flow. There is a blockage. I am now scheduled for a heart catherization this upcoming Tuesday!! He said my heart was still pretty strong at the time of the stress test/echo and that we need to act NOW before it gets damaged. A heart attack is on the horizon he said, if we dont do the catherization now.

I am freaking out here. I have always followed a healthy lifestyle, Im slim, exercise regularly, do not smoke, rarely drink, eat lean meats, etc... Darn genetics! :mad:

Who has had a heart catherization before and can you give me any advice? The Dr. said I wont be back to work for at least 7 days. And that depending on how many stents I need, I will be in the hospital longer.

Wow, SLOW DOWN.
Good you are getting done on Tuesday. The heart cath is not a big deal, really!!
yes, some 28 yr olds need stents, but most dont, even with a positive stress test and bad genes!
There are high percentages of false positive tests, the heart cath is the definitive test for coronary blockage.

Many here have had a heart cath , they will tell you it is not bad, I have had a right and left heart cath and it is not bad.

I hope you get some pleasantly unexpected news of a normal test on Tuesday. If you do need a stent, it can be done at the same time and you can go home that day or the next. You dont even get a stitch !
All the best, and if you are normal, keep up the good lifestyle choices as your genetics warrant this.

hopefully they wont find anything wrong

Did your doctor say which test shows that you may have a blockage? Maybe it is just a false negative and the cath will show that everything is fine. My prayers are with you, im sure things will be fine.

He said that the stress test and echo weren't normal and that the back side of my heart isnt getting proper bloodflow. He suspects a blockage.

When I go in for the catherization, I hope they dont find anything wrong! Hopefully its just a false positive or something. I hadnt thought about that....

Anyways, thanks for the positive thoughts and wishes. Im very nervous about this.

I know it is not easy but just try to relax and think positive. Think of it this way, atleast if there is a problem they caught it now and it can be taken care of before you had a heart attack and possibly suffered real damage. It very well may be a false negative, you wouldnt be the first one to have this happen to them.;)

I know it is not easy but just try to relax and think positive. Think of it this way, atleast if there is a problem they caught it now and it can be taken care of before you had a heart attack and possibly suffered real damage. It very well may be a false negative, you wouldnt be the first one to have this happen to them.;)

Thanks. Im just so anxious thinking that if this is happening when Im only 28, are more arteries going to have blockages and I will die at a young age like the rest of my family from heart disease? :mad: :(

Adidas0298--Good luck to you, you will be fine. Further tests many times reveal a better picture than first thought. FLFLOWERGIRL

That is not true. Maybe your other family members did not get stuff checked out like you are. They could have let this go on and not known about the problems. You are taking early steps to prevent anything worse from happening. Your doctors will keep a close eye on your heart health and be able to stop stuff before it gets to far. This news might be what it takes to keep your family history from repeating itself.

Well I am here lying in bed.. yesterday was my heart cath. Everything was 100% clear! I was pretty doped up, but made a point to watch the screen for a minute or two while they did the procedure, I was able to see them inject some dye and I saw the nice big healthy arteries :D

The Dr. said it was a false positive. I am VERY grateful for this!! Also my cholesterol was low (healthy low, not too low). So that was a good sign.:cool:

I go back 3-19-08 for follow up, we are going to talk about the heart palps and rapid heartbeats, of which the holter monitor recorded a few weeks ago.

The only thing that is bugging me now is this stupid collagen plug in my leg that is blocking the hole in my artery they made yesterday for the procedure. My leg is really sore!! :(

Congrats on the test!!! That is great news. I was hoping it was just a false positive. Now relax and try not to worry so much;)

that is wonderful news
let us know what they will be doing for the fast heart beat