Heart Disease & EECP in Europe
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Additional Complications due to Aging!
I was 70 a couple of months ago - a wry milestone. Glad you've got there and a notice that you're getting older and that things are gradually not working as well as they did. About 4 weeks ago I had a 'big' operation to correct a slipped disc in the lumbar (Lower) section of my back.
I had seriously damaged the Achilles tendon in my left leg about a year ago - running for a bus! This took 6 months to repair and wasn't helped by my active part in building our new house - fortunately now finished - mostly. About the turn of the year I started to notice shooting pains in both legs when I walked and naturally put this down to side effects from the Achilles tendon repair - until the physiotherapist treating me said no - something else is happening - spinal stenosis. This is progressive compression of the spinal cord due to pressure from a slipped disc. He passed me on to a back specialist surgeon who confirmed the diagnosis and gave me the usual options - live with it and use painkillers, local injections or surgery, the last of which I chose. My judgment was that I was probably fit enough to withstand the operation with a reasonable chance of success - the surgeon gave me the odds as 85:15 on a successful outcome based on experience with what is now a 150 year old procedure.
This duly took place towards the end of July and I knew within 24 hours that it had been well done - the pains had gone and everything still appeared to work. The surgeon also told me the damage had nothing to do with the Achilles tendon problem - I was the unwitting victim of 20-30 years of self-inflicted damage of which I knew nothing. If you have no symptoms you just assume you can go on doing these things.
4 weeks later I hardly know that anything has even happened - except for the rather vigorous regime of daily exercises prescribed by the physio whom I see every couple of weeks (I should be doing them now). I no longer stumble and my daily walking is up to over 9000 paces again.
And what of the heart and blood pressure during all this? Not a tremor or whisper of a problem. My BP was 110/68 at the pre-assessment and got up as far as 137/80 immediately after the operation. The anaesthetist said he noticed nothing.
Indeed, over the last 6 months my BP has steadily declined, the average resting BP taken last thing in the evening (so, very benign but consistent conditions) has been 116/70 over the last 3 months. Indeed I wonder if my drug regime - still a full spectrum hypertension package - needs revision. A discussion with the GP next month.
In summary, hooray for EECP and the long-lasting effects of such a good treatment. I am a very lucky man, both with EECP and a well executed back surgery. Let's hope the luck persists ¶ 7:58 am
I had seriously damaged the Achilles tendon in my left leg about a year ago - running for a bus! This took 6 months to repair and wasn't helped by my active part in building our new house - fortunately now finished - mostly. About the turn of the year I started to notice shooting pains in both legs when I walked and naturally put this down to side effects from the Achilles tendon repair - until the physiotherapist treating me said no - something else is happening - spinal stenosis. This is progressive compression of the spinal cord due to pressure from a slipped disc. He passed me on to a back specialist surgeon who confirmed the diagnosis and gave me the usual options - live with it and use painkillers, local injections or surgery, the last of which I chose. My judgment was that I was probably fit enough to withstand the operation with a reasonable chance of success - the surgeon gave me the odds as 85:15 on a successful outcome based on experience with what is now a 150 year old procedure.
This duly took place towards the end of July and I knew within 24 hours that it had been well done - the pains had gone and everything still appeared to work. The surgeon also told me the damage had nothing to do with the Achilles tendon problem - I was the unwitting victim of 20-30 years of self-inflicted damage of which I knew nothing. If you have no symptoms you just assume you can go on doing these things.
4 weeks later I hardly know that anything has even happened - except for the rather vigorous regime of daily exercises prescribed by the physio whom I see every couple of weeks (I should be doing them now). I no longer stumble and my daily walking is up to over 9000 paces again.
And what of the heart and blood pressure during all this? Not a tremor or whisper of a problem. My BP was 110/68 at the pre-assessment and got up as far as 137/80 immediately after the operation. The anaesthetist said he noticed nothing.
Indeed, over the last 6 months my BP has steadily declined, the average resting BP taken last thing in the evening (so, very benign but consistent conditions) has been 116/70 over the last 3 months. Indeed I wonder if my drug regime - still a full spectrum hypertension package - needs revision. A discussion with the GP next month.
In summary, hooray for EECP and the long-lasting effects of such a good treatment. I am a very lucky man, both with EECP and a well executed back surgery. Let's hope the luck persists ¶ 7:58 am
