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DECOMPOSED ----- Medical stuff...

By: kathy_s16 in POPE 5 | Recommend this post (0)
Sun, 15 Dec 19 4:42 AM | 20 view(s)
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Msg. 46861 of 62138
(This msg. is a reply to 46796 by Decomposed)

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HELLO SWEET CHEEKS!

WOW, THOSE NURSES DON'T FOOL AROUND. THEY DON'T SAY, "YOU ARE KIDNEY STONE FREE".....THEY PROCLAIM IT.
I WORKED WITH A MAN WHO HAD KIDNEY STONES AND HE SCREAMED WITH PAIN. HE SAID IT LOOKED LIKE A GRAIN OF SAND, BUT IT FELT LIKE A BOULDER.

IF YOU TIRE FROM CARRYING AROUND THAT PEE BUCKET IN CHURCH, JUST THROW IT AT A MISBEHAVING KID WHEN HIS MOM IS LOOKING THE OTHER WAY.

DE, DID YOU KNOW THAT YOU HAVE TO GO TO A LAB EVERY 7 - 10 DAYS AND HAVE BLOOD DRAWN SO THEY KNOW WHAT YOUR I.N.R IS, WHEN ON WARFARIN? MOST DOCTORS DO NOT USE THAT ANYMORE. IT'S ELIQUIS, XARELTO and I can't think of the other ones.

ON THE PLUS SIDE, WITH WARFARIN, SHOULD YOU START BLEEDING FOR ANY REASON, THEY GIVE YOU A SHOT OF VITAMIN K AND THEY FIX YOU UP QUICKLY. HOWEVER, THE NEWER MEDS TAKE ABOUT 2 DAYS TO DRAIN FROM YOUR SYSTEM, SO THAT EVEN IF YOU'RE JUST HAVING A TEETH CLEANING, YOU HAVE TO STOP TAKING IT TWO DAYS BEFORE YOUR DENTAL APPOINTMENT.

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"............ He then declined to give me the latest and greatest valve (twenty years old and FDA approved) that I'd found on the internet and that I'd requested. He offered to find me a different surgeon if I wanted to go that route. I didn't want to change surgeons, so I settled on the 40-year-old "St. Jude synthetic" valve that....."

AND YOUR NEW CARDIOLOGIST AGREED WITH THIS? AS LONG AS YOU'RE HAPPY WITH THIS SECOND OPINION.
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DE, ALMOST EVERYONE HERE IS ON A BLOOD THINNER. YOU'RE GETTING HUNG UP ON THAT, WHEN I SUSPECT YOU'RE GOING TO BE TAKING IT NO MATTER WHICH VALVE REPLACEMENT YOU GET.

WHEN'S THE DATE?
HOW'S THE KID? Smile))


If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.


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The above is a reply to the following message:
Medical stuff...
By: Decomposed
in POPE 5
Sat, 14 Dec 19 7:11 AM
Msg. 46796 of 62138

Today I went to the urologist's office. They took an X-ray and the nurse there proclaimed me to be "kidney stone free." That's good. I don't know when I passed the stone, but there were times when I wasn't using the catcher. A 4 mm stone is big, though. Most folks have been surprised that I didn't know it had come out.

Now they've got me peeing in a bucket for 24 hours (starting Sunday morning). Hope they don't look at me funny when I'm carting that around at church.

On the 10th, I met with my surgeon. He made a brief pitch for a "cow tissue valve" (which requires no blood thinner) but I wasn't biting. He then declined to give me the latest and greatest valve (twenty years old and FDA approved) that I'd found on the internet and that I'd requested. He offered to find me a different surgeon if I wanted to go that route. I didn't want to change surgeons, so I settled on the 40-year-old "St. Jude synthetic" valve that, unfortunately, will put me on a full regimen of coumadin (warfarin) for the rest of my life. Some of you may be familiar with warfarin. It's rat poison.

I'm not totally comfortable with my surgeon's motivations. Refusing to install a functionally superior valve that reduces the coumadin dose by half makes no sense. He said he just wasn't comfortable installing a different valve. But then he used coumadin as a reason why I should go with the tissue valve that could last as little as five years! (5 to 20 years, with 12 being the average.)

The thing is, I know about the deals some surgeons cut with insurance companies. Synthetic valves cost about $30,000. Cow valves are virtually FREE. So, all that an insurance company has to do in order to save itself beaucoup bucks is to tell various heart surgeons that they will give them $5,000 for every cow valve they implant. Without it looking too much like a bribe, IT'S A BRIBE.

I'm not saying that this is what my surgeon is doing, but it's what SOME surgeons do.

On the 9th, I met with my new permanent cardiologist. He likes my surgeon and my hospital. He didn't think there'd be any problem getting the valve I wanted. Oh well.

Today I cancelled my January 3rd dermatology appointment. Two weeks after open-heart surgery, I don't think moles will be my biggest concern.

I'm done with doctors. For a whole week. Friday's the day. Surgery is expected to take four hours. They'll watch me for another four before trying to wake me up. Then I'll be in the hospital for (probably) six days. If all goes per the plan, they may evict me on Christmas. Sheesh. Even baby Jesus was given a roof for Christmas.


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