Recent health Problem means

No Sermons or Lessons

December 13, 2009

 

 

Some of you who know me, know that my aorta dissected on March 4, 1998.  It was repaired at that time, but only about 4" or 5".  After that, I was checked every six months, and then every year, and I thought everything was fine.

 

For the past three months or so, I have been having pain in my back and shoulder.  I went to our family doctor, and he only suggested massage and warm moist compresses.  Then I asked my cardiologist this past Tuesday, and he just said I may need to see a chiropractor.  Then my wife got me an appointment with a doctor in Fort Worth on Thursday.  Well, this doctor seems to have taken things more seriously than the others and ordered an x-ray, cat-scan (sp) and other lab work which I arranged to have done on Friday.

 

Friday evening about 8:00, my phone rang and the caller ID had this doctor's office name and number.  That concerned me a bit, and then I picked up the phone.  She identified herself as the doctor who saw me that day and told me that the hospital that had done the cat-scan had called her out of concern for what they saw.  She in turn had called my cardiologist and he had called his assistant to meet me at the emergency room of Methodist Central Hospital in Dallas.  She said there was no time to waste and that she wanted me to go immediately to the Hospital.

 

I arrived about 8:30 and was in the emergency room while they prepared a room for me in the Intensive Care Unit.  By the time I was settled in ICU, it was nearly 3:30 Saturday morning. 

 

The concern was that my aorta had swollen to 5.8 cm.  I am told that when they reach 6.0 cm, they may burst.  That was the reason for the alarm.  My inner lining had ruptured in 1998, and now I was left with two layers instead of the usual three.  If they burst, my cardiologist told me it takes about 4 minutes to bled to death, and that if I were on the operating table when it happened that he couldn't put me out and get to the problem before I would have bled to death, so that's the reason for the panic.

 

My blood pressure was 170 over something, so that was making concern even greater.  They began working to get my blood pressure down, and before I left this morning, it was something like 117/68, so that was much better.

 

They called in the surgeon who had assisted my surgeon in 1998.  He explained that the problem was located between my heart and spine.  Not an easy or safe place to get to!  I had thought that my yearly checkup provided information about this, but it didn't.  All they had for comparison was a cat scan that was done in 2002, and at that time it was 4.6 cm.  Well, now it is 5.8 cm., but the big question is, how long did it take it to get that size.  No one has the answer to that question, so the surgeon who assisted with my surgery wants to see me in about two weeks.  At that time, it will be easier to see if there is need for further surgery now.

 

Many prayers have gone up for me since Friday evening from several different churches and individuals, and I am thankful for everyone.

 

Lord willing that I live, I plan to resume somewhat of a normal life in the morning and be back with sermons and lessons next Sunday.  Please keep me, my family, and my doctors in your prayers.

 

Thanks, and my God bless you,

 

Harley