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BajaBlanca
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Posts: 13165
Registered: 10-28-2008
Location: La Bocana, BCS
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Cardio- versions in La Paz ?
Hi folks, Les's heart is racing again (too much love for me, I know). And we need a cardio-version.
Has anyone had one done in La Paz or Cabo?
What was the total cost?
Dr name and contact info?
We are trying to decide whether Les should just go to the states via plane where we have insurance or whether it is financially viable to do the
procedure here.
Gracias to all.
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EnsenadaDr
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Mood: Move on. It is just a chapter in the past, but don't close the book- just turn the page
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Baja I would suggest going to the nearest ER immediately. at times, Atrial Fibrillation can be controlled with Diltiazem or Verapamil. Let the ER
decide whether to cardiovert, but medication should be the first consideration. Get to an ER right away, the heart can decompensate rapidly and turn
into Vfib or Vtach, which can be deadly. You need an EKG to determine what kind of arrhythmia he has.
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BajaBlanca
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No worries, we have a cardiologist in La Paz and one in San Diego. Both on the alert.
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EnsenadaDr
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Mood: Move on. It is just a chapter in the past, but don't close the book- just turn the page
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ok but I know a few Nomads have recommended some good hospitals down that way and Les needs to be hooked up right away to a monitor. Especially today
being Dia de Las Madres, and the US not very close, I wouldn't wait for a return call. Keep him in the A/C and out of the hot sun!!
[Edited on 5-10-2014 by EnsenadaDr]
[Edited on 5-10-2014 by EnsenadaDr]
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Mulegena
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I'm sure your La Paz cardiologist will best advise you.
Good luck, dear friends.
Keep us posted.
"Raise your words, not your voice. It's rain that grows flowers, not thunder." ~Rumi
"It's the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it." ~ Aristotle
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BajaBlanca
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Yes, his advice was to go to Cabo for the esophagus testing and then return to La Paz, his estimate was about $20 - $25,000 pesos. Just wanted to
see if anyone had any specific experiences.
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EnsenadaDr
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I always advise my patients to try the Valsalva maneuver in a fast arrhythmia, bear down as having a bowel movement, it puts pressure on the vagal
nerve and can break the rapid heartbeat. I had a young man come into the Maneadero clinic about 22 years old and his heart rate was clearly too rapid
and abnormal. I told him to go into the bathroom and bear down as he was having a bowel movement, and he did it once and it didn't work. He tried it
again, and his heart rate returned to normal. As there were no medications or cardioversion equipment appropriate for his condition, this was a tried
and true method for many doctors to suggest in an emergency situation where someone's heart was racing and no access to treatment.
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Mulegena
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History of a racing heart that needed cardio-version... doctor suggests a trip to Cabo and an esophagus test...
Won't the doctor meet you in a La Paz emergency room in a hospital in which he has privileges?
This makes me very uncomfortable.
Suggest Les does the maneuver described by Janene and head to Fidepaz Hospital now.
Advise the doctor(s) of your plans.
[Edited on 5-11-2014 by Mulegena]
"Raise your words, not your voice. It's rain that grows flowers, not thunder." ~Rumi
"It's the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it." ~ Aristotle
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rts551
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beware free medical advice.
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DENNIS
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| Quote: | Originally posted by BajaBlanca
esophagus testing |
For those who wonder: they put a camera about the size of a Vienna Sausage down your throat to look at the heart from the back side, making sure no
blood has pooled and solidified at the bottom. The shock could break that loose and go to the brain. Very deadly.
"YOU CAN'T LITTER ALUMINUM"
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redmesa
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Blanca , John just died of a heart attack after 4 years of AFib. The advice always was to head to the nearest emergency room and get cardio-vert. I
know you guys have had lots of experience with heart conditions. John and I decided when we went to Baja that the first sign of high blood pressure
or AFib he would fly quickly home to Canada and into the nearest emergency room, which he did several time. This is from a woman who has been
through this with her husband for many years.
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Udo
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At least you and Les are in a majorly populated area with great medical care, not in La Bocana.
Udo
Youth is wasted on the young!
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Mula
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I wouldn't worry about cost . . . I'd just get to the nearest ER.
But maybe that's just me!!!!
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redmesa
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Yes, Mula you are so right. There is no reason to delay. We were in Bahia Asuncion so we were very alert to any changes in John's health. He died
of an unpredictable heart attack on a beach in Hawaii. So you just do the best you can when you can.
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EnsenadaDr
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Or TGE, Transesophageal Echocardiogram. The closest point of contact to the Left Atrium is the esophagus where most emboli of the heart occur and can
be visualized well from that vantage point.
However, this is done after the arrhythmia is controlled.
| Quote: | Originally posted by DENNIS
| Quote: | Originally posted by BajaBlanca
esophagus testing |
For those who wonder: they put a camera about the size of a Vienna Sausage down your throat to look at the heart from the back side, making sure no
blood has pooled and solidified at the bottom. The shock could break that loose and go to the brain. Very deadly. |
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redmesa
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It has depended on us whether John had been on blood thinners or not. He had a TGE once but other times he did not before a cardio-vers. A TGE is
not pleasant and John had to be put under an anesthesia to have it done before his Cardio-version.
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EnsenadaDr
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redmesa I am so sorry for the loss of your husband. Once they establish there are or there are no blood clots in the heart then they don't have to
repeat the test. If they do find blood clots, they will put the person on blood thinners and usually they do not have to repeat the test once they
have a baseline.
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DENNIS
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| Quote: | Originally posted by EnsenadaDr
However, this is done after the arrhythmia is controlled.
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To me, they did it right before they pulled the shock trigger. I was not in sinus rhythm at that point.
"YOU CAN'T LITTER ALUMINUM"
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EnsenadaDr
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Mood: Move on. It is just a chapter in the past, but don't close the book- just turn the page
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You had a scheduled cardioversion. This was after you had been diagnosed. If someone is decompensating, they will try and get the arrhythmia under
control first.
They can do it either way.
http://intermountainhealthcare.org/ext/Dcmnt?ncid=521046279
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BajaBlanca
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Les has the best doc in sandiego. The guy is considered the Pope of docs and travels the world teaching about ablations as he is head of the dept at
UCSD, he knows Les forward and backwards.
I just wanted some info specific to La Paz. How can you do a cardio version here when the local doc told us one can only get the esphogus test done
in Cabo? If anyone has soecific info to this area, it would be appreciated (((:
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