I was diagnosed with CHF last year after heart attack, condition worsens everyday, so this week I had echo's, xrays, cardiolite stress test(had to be stopped, heart couldnt handle it) ..The Pac and nurse were slinging around the word CARDIOMYOPOTHY and when I asked questions they said they couldnt answer.
I can barely sit up, I cant even walk through the grocery store anymore...
My neighbor works 60 hours a week claiming also to have cardiomyopthy....
why am I sick and disabled and she is not?
My heart infraction is 20%
Please if you read and know anything about this stuff, will someone tell me...
Dont see doctor til 3-7 for all this weeks results and no one answers my questions

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I've spent my fair share of time with cardiologists, but was unaware of this term. I found a site that might help you: The Cardiomyopathy Center (http://www.heartcenteronline.com/myheartdr/Articles_about_the_heart/The_Cardiomyopathy_Center.html). Good luck

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Rich

[This message has been edited by rhlomax (edited 01-30-2003).]

Hello. I am sorry for your ill health. Cardiomyopathy means enlarged weakened heart. This probably is a result of your heart attack. Did you mean 20% was your ejection fraction? That is the amount of blood your heart is pumping throughout your body with the blood that comes into your heart. Normal ejection fraction is about 60%. Different people can have different levels of cardiomyopathy which is why your neighbor may feel better then you. I am sorry your doctors are not doing a better job of explaining this to you. Are you on medicine to help strengthen your contractions? I wish you the best of luck. Let me know how you are doing.

thanks for replying....Yes my heart infraction level is 20-25%..but I have no clogged arteries and just had a cardiolite test for that, had to stop the test cause I started having back results, but it showed the arteries are still clear.....so they called me and said , Oh your test went well, and Im like ......."the one that almost cause me to go ito cardiac arresst?"
She replys, well that happens sometimes,,,,,
I dont see the doctor unil 3-7 and will repost the insanity that he tells me........
thank you for responding, thanks

In re-reading your response I hear that you have no blocked arteries, yet you had a Heart Attack. How did they explain that you had a Heart Attack. Something had to be blocked to cause the blood flow to stop and your heart to experience a heart attack. I had 2 Cariolite tests and they were FALSE negatives...meaning that the symtoms did not stop so they went in for an angiogram and both times found major blockages. You can not trust the Cardiolite tests.

You call the "result", that shows the % of function your heart is working at, an "ejection fraction" (not heart infraction)

If you continue to have systoms..insist on an angiogram to prove the condition of the heart.



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thanks for your response..I do not understand, Cardiomyopothy, I do not understand the reason why I had a heart attack..that was 1 year ago today and I had a angiogram at that time, with clear arteries, with the exception of something called a BRANDLE BUNCH, which he said means nothing.

Toay 2-25 I had to call 911, I had chest pains so bad, and they did the things they hook me up too and again, the words BRANDLE BUNCH were included....

I called my cardiologist who was in surgery at the time, his nurses are cold hearted "machine people". So I called my family doctor, who called me in a pain killer, and xanax to help me sleep and calm me down.
I havent gottent either medication yet...

Everytime I go to the doctor, the charge me 195.00, he tells me I have a very weak heart, tells me how busy he is a and leaves me sitting......
I dont know what to ask, I dont know what I am supposed to be feeling, I dont know what to exspect..and I dont know why they dont answer the questions with anything other than "you have a very weak heart".


I am so frustrated........why could I not have a heart attack without clogged arteries,is that the only reason for heart attacks.....????

My whole family died or Coronary Heart Disease befor age 60, my brother 53 passing last year, he had stints.
Im just so frustrated with this.............I am so sick of being sick :-(

Thank all of you for your responses and god bless you all

Since I was very concerned when I read your posts I was looking for heart attacks on different web sites. It seems that the major reason for a heart attack are blocked arteries. Having a blocked artery means your heart doesn´t get enough blood and this is why it can not work properly which leads to a heart attack (very simply explained). A part of your heart muscle dies due to the heart attack and this is why it can not pump in the right way. Sometimes and very seldom inflammated arteries can be the reason for a heart attack.
I couldn´t find anything about "brandle bunch".
I´m having cardiomyopathy myself (dilated cardiomyopathy, not due to a heart attack) and I know how bad you can feel sometimes. Having cardiomyopathy means to have a weak heart which means it doesn´t pump properly (see ejection fraction in prettywoman´s post). But this is nothing a doc should treat just like this. You have to get medication which strengthens your contractions and which helps your heart.
Please go and see your doc once more even if he charges 195.00 again! If your heart gets weaker and weaker this is very dangerous! You have to get medicine and you should be on the list for heart transplantations! Next time you see your doc INSIST on the medicine and INSIST on him explaining your disease to you. Make a list of things you want to know and ask him everything. Don´t allow him to play with your health and your life!
Let us know how you are doing and how things are going.
medicinenet.com explains heart attack quite good, I think.

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[This message has been edited by Mezi (edited 02-27-2003).]

Do you mean bundle branch block? This is a conduction problem with the heart and the severity depends on whether it is a right (not so serious) or left (more serious) branch block. If your doctor said it is nothing to be concerned about, he/she was probably referring to a right bundle branch block.
Nancy

YES A BRANDLE BUNCH BLOCK AND I DO NOT KNOW IF IT IS LEFT OR RIGHT

I am new to this site so please bare with me. My father had a massive heart attack June of 2002. He was diagnosed with alcohol induced cardiomyopothy (he is/was an alcoholic) and he has an ejection fraction rate of less than 10%. The doctors say that he should have been dead over a year prior to the heart attack. I was just wondering if anyone has any info on alcohol induced cardiomyopothy. I cannot seem to find anything related to that. I thank in advance anyone who can help. I am still having trouble coping with it since only in the past few years we have become close, an actual father daughter relationship. I love him with my heart and soul.

Hi Buddy-
I empathize with your anxiety about your father...I was crazy about mine. To find out more about alcohol induced cardiomyopathy, use Google and type in exactly: "cardiomyopathy" "alcohol".
I just tried it and there seemed to be some links there for you to investigate. Good luck!

P.S. Welcome to the Boards, by the way.
You might want to re-post your message as a 'New Topic" and start your own thread with this question if you need to talk further. We'll find you more easily.

[This message has been edited by zuzu8 (edited 04-25-2003).]

I had a heart attack but no blocked arteries either.I have a heart valve problem that caused my heart attack.The Dr explained it like a garden hose that got a kink in it which stopped the blood flow to that side of the heart.

I had a heart attack but no blocked arteries either.I have a heart valve problem that caused my heart attack.The Dr explained it like a garden hose that got a kink in it which stopped the blood flow to that side of the heart.

There may be some misunderstanding. As an analogy it seems to me a kink would be comparable to a blocked artery. A hole in a hose would affect the output and pressure. Somewhat similar to valve regurgitation as a percentage of the blood flows back into the chamber and the decreased blood output requires the heart to work harder to meet the same blood volume demand of an efficient heart. The result is the harder working heart will increase in size (cardiomyopathy).

I was diagnosed with CHF last year after heart attack, condition worsens everyday, so this week I had echo's, xrays, cardiolite stress test(had to be stopped, heart couldnt handle it) ..The Pac and nurse were slinging around the word CARDIOMYOPOTHY and when I asked questions they said they couldnt answer.
I can barely sit up, I cant even walk through the grocery store anymore...
My neighbor works 60 hours a week claiming also to have cardiomyopthy....
why am I sick and disabled and she is not?
My heart infraction is 20%
Please if you read and know anything about this stuff, will someone tell me...
Dont see doctor til 3-7 for all this weeks results and no one answers my questions

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cardiomyopothy means enlarged weakened heart ,I have congestive heart failure, sleep apnea, high blood pressure and my infraction level was 19%.now 14 months later it went up to 39% so it takes time but it does scare you.so it takes time and a lot of walking is good for your heartI also was pretty weak and had a hard time sitting up.so good luck from slystriker

What is infarction level?

Is there anyone who has gotten disability because of their cardiomyopothy????????????? If so, what was your ejection and perhaps other factors that they gave you disability????

I have never applied for disability, however from what I have read (from reliable sources) heart failure is less than 29% EF and compensable. Recently, I read a patient can be in the HF range and if physically and mentally able to perform regular duties would be ineligible for compensation. At least that is the trend, but there are states and insurance poicies that differ so it may depend on the state and the insurance policy.

Some factors with a low EF would include the inability to perform regular duties without shortness of breath, work stress causes unmanageable chest pain, high blood pressure, fast heart rate, inability to concentrate, etc.

My sister only has 10% of her heart left, she is doing well dose anyone know If it can be fixed..She has an injuction infraction of the heart. What is it and what cause's it...Rags