Soup diet ahead for this octogenarian

July 12, 2011 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: I’ve been reading your articles for years. I hope that you may have some guidance for me.

I had my first heart attack in 1978 at the age of 47 1/2, and had triple bypasses in ’83 and ’90. I decided to follow the advice of my doctor at that point and retired on Social Security disability. I took my meds — but two years ago my teeth started falling out.

My new dentist billed me $10,000 to fix things, but his work started falling out within two years. When I went to him for my last repair, he said nitrates used for heart problems cause deep root decay in teeth. He recommended I simply use “stickums” like Fixodent to keep them in place like dentures. Is that true?
[Read more...]

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Healthy chap not so healthy

February 9, 2011 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: My 58-year-old husband who is never sick was preparing for a hernia-repair procedure but did not pass the EKG pre-op test. They had him do a stress test, which he also flunked. They did a cardiac catheterization and found the right coronary artery is 100 percent blocked. Another has a 60 percent blockage, and another has two 30 percent blockages. They said they don’t do anything unless a blockage is 70 percent or more and gave him Crestor and metoprolol tartrate.

I guess I assumed with a 100 percent blockage, they would have to do a bypass but that doesn’t appear to be an option. He said they do this for a living and have standards they have to follow and that it is a little artery and a big blockage. Other vessels seem to have taken over for it. [Read more...]

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Exercise fails to increase heart rate

April 10, 2010 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: I’m a 54-year-old female who had a heart attack at age 47. They think it was a coronary spasm.

I’ve begun to work out recently with a personal trainer because I am about 80 pounds overweight. He is concerned that I have difficulty getting my heart rate up. After 20 to 30 minutes of cardio (3 miles per hour at a 2 percent incline on the treadmill), my heart rate is still around 98 to 105. Should I be working harder or could it be a result of taking Toprol XL even though I do not have high blood pressure, nor have I ever had it? My cardiologist thinks taking 1/2 of a 100-milligram tablet daily is a good idea to prevent future attacks.

I also take simvastatin, tizanidine and an 81-milligram aspirin each day. My triglyceride result just came back at 223, but the rest of my cholesterol was normal. My total was 180, and my heart rate while standing still is about 68. And I smoke cigars daily. Need I worry? My trainer is.
[Read more...]

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Follow Physician Advice For Heart Condition

April 14, 2009 By

DEAR DR. GOTT:
My 63-year-old male friend has pericardial effusion.
He had increasing shortness of breath and general weakness for about two weeks before having a procedure to remove the fluid. During it a liter of blood fluid was extracted but the biopsy was negative. He has never had any other heart problems but is being treated for emphysema.
He will have follow-up echocardiograms because the fluid is apparently reappearing. [Read more...]

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Cinnamon For Angina?

February 18, 2009 By

DEAR DR. GOTT:
I am writing to you about the benefits of taking cinnamon supplements daily. I first saw an article in your column sent by a man who lowered his cholesterol by 30 points after taking cinnamon for a year. After taking cinnamon tablets for a year and changing nothing else, my cholesterol went from 230 to 170.

I later told one of my friends (a nurse) who said that her husband (a physician) had high cholesterol but he didn’t want to take statins because of the side effects. They discussed the cinnamon and decided to try it as he had nothing to lose. At the time he was also having terrible bouts of angina and ate nitro pills by the handful. The pain was so severe that his wife also had to give him injections of pain killers just to relieve the pain. Both the nitro and pain medication were prescribed by their primary care physician. [Read more...]

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Patient Needs Statin Alternative

February 16, 2009 By

DEAR DR. GOTT:
I am 80 years old and a few years ago, I was diagnosed as having congestive heart failure. My primary care doctor referred me to a cardiologist (a college friend of his) who put me through every kind of test known to man. He then prescribed three medicines for me, including Lipitor because my cholesterol was 275.

Shortly after starting them I began having muscle pain in my legs and had heard warnings about statins, including those from your column. I was already taking co-enzyme Q10 so knew it wasn’t due to a depletion. I asked my cardiologist about a cholesterol lowering medication without statins but he said they weren’t any good and switched me to Crestor instead. It was still a statin and despite my concerns, I took it like a good patient. The pain returned so I stopped it and started watching my diet more closely. [Read more...]

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Daily Column

February 5, 2009 By

DEAR DR. GOTT:
My 39-year-old daughter is having heart problems. The doctor says she has something called cardiomyopathy. She has weak spells and is always tired. Her doctor had her on a medication but it caused her blood pressure to go to low so he took her off it. He is now trying to find something else that may work for her.

Could you please explain what this disease is, what happens to the body, any treatment options and what the prognosis is? I only know that somehow the heart doesn’t pump right.

DEAR READER:
Cardiomyopathy is a condition which causes the heart muscle to weaken leading to inadequate heart pumping and blood flow, as well as other problems such as palpitations. [Read more...]

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Are A-Fib And Pulsating Head Linked?

December 23, 2008 By

DEAR DR. GOTT:
I wrote to you on June 13, 2008 about my atrial fibrillation. I am scheduled to have an ablation on September 29th. My concern is the pulsating in my head which is causing lightheadedness. Is this caused by the heart problem? Will the ablation solve this condition? Is there any danger of the ablation procedure worsening the pulsating? I have complete confidence in the physician performing the ablation but he does not give me an exact answer to my questions about the pulsating sensation which I described to you in the June letter.

DEAR READER:
I have written many times in the past that I cannot be used as a second opinion for upcoming procedures. I simply provide information to the writer that can be used to receive appropriate medical care from a physician that can examine him or her. [Read more...]

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Good Attitude Key To Feeling Well

December 18, 2008 By

DEAR DR. GOTT:
I have read your column for more years than I can remember. I cannot believe your many readers who claim to be in very good health or in the best of health. Then they go on to explain that they have cancer, heart trouble, strokes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, arthritis, diabetes, fainting, dizziness, and some other diseases I cannot even pronounce.

Why do they insist or believe they are in very good health? What do they consider poor health? I am a 72-year-old male. I’ve had a couple of stents put in my heart. I’m on Plavix and blood pressure medication. I also have skin cancer and have had several lesions removed. I wear a hearing aid.

I can still walk and mow the lawn, do work around my house and ride a bicycle, but I don’t consider myself to be in good health, just lucky and in better health than all those people who write to you. Whom are they kidding? [Read more...]

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Daily Column

December 13, 2008 By

DEAR DR. GOTT:
Please tell me about left bundle branch block. Is it something that I should worry about?

DEAR READER:
The heart is a muscular cone-shaped organ, approximately the size of a clenched fist that pumps oxygenated blood through the entire body. In essence, it is a natural pacemaker. The chambers of the heart include two ventricles with thick muscular walls and two atria with thin muscular walls. The heart is divided into right and left sides by an inner wall known as the septum. The purpose of the right side of the heart is to pump blood from which the oxygen has been removed into the lung arteries. The purpose of the left side of the heart is to pump re-oxygenated blood throughout the body.

Heart block occurs because of the interference of electric impulses that control the activity of the heart muscle. [Read more...]

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