Endocarditis is one most common type of for rheumatic heart disease complications this is a condition of inflamed heart’s inner linings that has to be given more care. When rheumatic heart disease complications develop one of the four heart valves of the patient is infected and bacterial growth is the main reason for such kind of infections.

I’ve written before how CHDers need to avoid Endocarditis if at all possible. Endocarditis is caused by a bacterial infection in the bloodstream, and it happens a lot more often than you think it does. If you are healthy, your immune systems can usually smother the infection pretty quickly and you may not even feel bad. But if you have a heart problem, sometimes that bacteria can get a foothold and start growing, and then all kinds of problems can develop. I’ve spent seven weeks in the hospital with Endocarditis and had to have a cyst taken out of my brain because of it. Not fun!

The easiest ways to prevent Endocarditis is to be prescribed oral antibiotics before a dental appointment (if you need them; not every CHDer does. Check with your Cardiologist) and if you get a small cut or injury, STOP and take care of it right then. Would you rather spend ten minutes cleaning up a wound and then covering it with a Band-Aid when you injure yourself or two months in the hospital after it becomes infected?

From the EchoJournal website, here is a look at some of the damage that can happen from Endocarditis: This person had the bacteria lodge inside of  his/her Pulmonary Valve and begin to grow. Now it is a vegetative growth inside the valve, but trust me, this is a vegetable garden that you want absolutely nothing to do with! On top of the weeks of IV antibiotics, this person will need heart surgery to replace that damaged valve.

Few rashes will affect the palms and soles. If pt presents with rashes here, you must think about:

TEN/SJS
syphilis
coxsackie
Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever
Endocarditis
Meningococcemia
Toxis shock syndrome

Million TIMES More Squalene In H1N1 Vaccine Than What Caused Gulf War Illness
Dr. Laibow: There is over 1-Million-Times the amount of adjuvant squalene in the current H1N1 vaccines than there was in the shots given to US Troops in 1976. 25% of Gulf War soldiers and personnel who recieved the H1N1 vaccine developed Gulf War Syndrome.

What’s The Danger of Swine Flu Vaccinations?

Global Research
August 20, 2009

As seen on p. 6 of this EMEA document (7), the Pandremix vaccine contains 10,68 mg of squalene per 0,5 ml. This corresponds to 2.136.0000 microgrammes pr. billion microgrammes of water, i.e. one million times more squalene per dose than in (4). There is any reason to believe that this will make people sick to a much higher extent than in 1990/91. This appears murderous to me.”

Novartis Using HIV/AIDS Protein in Pandemic Vaccine

Socio-Eco History
July7, 2009

There are much safer ways to protect oneself from this flu virus, such as higher doses of vitamin D3, selective immune enhancement using supplements, and a good diet.”

The American Heart Association has long had guidelines for dealing with Endocarditis – a problem not faced by the majority of people, but threatening to those of us with Congenital Heart Defects (CHDs). Endocarditis can occur when bacteria in the blood settles on a damaged heart valve. This can cause an infection of the Endocardium (the inner lining of the heart) or can damage or destroy a heart valve.

For years the guidelines stated that if you had any kind of problem with your heart (defect, bypass surgery, had a valve replaced, etc.) you should take antibiotics to protect yourself from Endocarditis when you went to the dentist. But the guidelines have recently changed: Now, antibiotics are only recommended for certain people, and for certain procedures.

The guidelines have been changed because researchers have found that Endocarditis itself is changing. Studies in Europe have shown that the Antibiotics may not be that much of a preventative, and health care Endocarditis – Endocarditis caused by “in hospital contamination” – is rising. Also, surgery (if needed) is seen as being more effective the earlier it is done, so you need a whole team approach – Cardiologists, Cardiac Surgeons, Infective Disease Specialists, and a major cardiac surgical center, all working together.

One of the ways Endocarditis is diagnosed, especially if you have a medical device implanted in your body, is by Trans-Esophageal Echocardiography (TEE). It’s usually not pleasant: A tube with an ultrasound probe on the end is passed down your throat to give the doctors a good look at the heart from as close as possible. Ouch!

Mayo Clinic is working with new computer software to diagnose Endocarditis without the TEE. Designed to work like the human brain, the software literally has to be “taught” what to look for and how to respond. It’s complicated, but the software has made the correct diagnosis most of the time. (72 out of 73 times for all infections; and 12 of 13 Endocarditis cases in particular.)

Artificial neural networks —teachable software designed to mimic the human brain — could one day be used to diagnose endocarditis related to implanted cardiac-rhythm devices.

This artificial neural network correctly identified only a handful of CRMD-IE cases, and it was more successful in pinpointing generator pocket infections, which are fairly easy for clinicians to recognize.

But it’s a novel and innovative approach, and it clearly warrants further investigation…

Inflammatory
Roth spots (retinal hemorrhage + pale center)
Osler’s nodes (O for Ouch — painful)

Embolic
Splinter hemorrhage
petechiae
Janeway lesions (septic emboli -> nontender, hemorrhagic macules on palms or soles)

Indications for Prophylaxis

1. Previous hx of Endocarditis
2. Mechanical heart valve
3. Congenital Heart Disease
4. Transplant

I finally figured out how to use RSS feeds and it’s great stuff!  My brain is so off right now. Thank God for Google making everything easier.

The pre-op appt with my primary care doctor went fine yesterday.  My pulse was high (105) which is normal for me.  My BP was so low the machine couldn’t read it, which is normal for me.  I weighed in at 129 lbs which is NOT NORMAL for me.  That’s about 10 lbs heavier than normal.  My EKG was fine and just showed the high pulse – which was normal for me.  So, the only thing that was worrisome is my weight and that’s probably from the endo and the fibroma that the ultrasound tech inflamed.  Dr. H said she’d send all her recommendations to the surgeon and said that I may need to spend some extra time on IV antibiotics just so we don’t have to worry about endocarditis.   My mom had endocarditis last year and that was SCARY.

This morning I walked out of the bedroom – in freaking huge amounts of pain – in search of coffee before the kids got up.  All the kids were up though – and both boys immediately said “Alyssa is stealing food and it’s all under the couch.”  She had eaten 3 peanut and granola bars, a box of raisins, and hidden several other granola bars and snacks under the couch.  She not only had the evidence all over her and caked in her teeth, but told me that she did not do it – that it was Ethan who did it all.  LJ said “that’s a lie.  She was trying to force Ethan to eat some raisins.”  I checked E out and he had minty fresh toothpaste breath and so did LJ.  Grrrrr….

None of us got much sleep last night due to the storms and power outages so everyone was cranky this morning.  E just got sent back to bed for throwing the mother of all tantrums, of all things, so I’m thinking I’m going to take a nap too.  It was so adorable last night.  I walked in with the flashlight to check on the babies and Alyssa had shot straight up out of bed.  She says in her little pumpkin voice “Mommy, I’m scared of lightning.”  She came out to the couch and laid down in between me and Shaun and went right to sleep.  She had her head on Daddy’s lap and her feet snuggled up to Mommy and apparently that’s all it takes to make lightning irrelevant.  I held the flashlight in between my knees and kept crocheting.  I finished another washcloth and have been working on some dish towels to match.  When the power came back on, we were able to get A back to bed and I was able to go to bed too.

So, this morning I had to go meet with the school because they were offering food as rewards in her classroom and had basically told me I couldn’t regulate what she ate there.  I was going to let it go yesterday, but she’s not acting with her brain right now.  This is pure instinct.  I spoke with the school vice principal and it went so well.  Not only can I regulate her diet, I can VERY specifically regulate it.  We have an IEP (individual education plan) set up for Monday so that the school psychologist, the counselor, the principal and vice principal and her teachers all agree – in writing – to meet certain goals.  I also let the vp know that I didn’t think the teachers and lunch room manager had taken me seriously when I talked to them last week.  She HAS to be watched at all times.  We are under a 24/7 safety plan with her because she self-harms.  If she can’t stuff her face, she pulls out hair and cuts herself.  She lies like she breathes and people fall all over themselves to give her things.

They see an adorable little 5 year old.  They don’t see how scared she is that she’s going to be rejected, hurt, beaten, sexually abused, and starved.  They don’t see that she’s had to build up these defenses just to survive and that we’re working every single day to build trust and reassurance that she’s safe.  So, the vice principal understood and I told her that I have all the documentation they need to keep the school covered to follow what I’m asking for.  That we need to make sure that she knows that school isn’t a different “life” than home – that school and home co-exist and the rules don’t change.  They need to make sure that every word and action she sees (she is hyper-vigilant about observing people) reinforces the therapy plan that’s in place.  Right now, they’re thinking we’re way too strict.  Most people do.    They don’t realize the safety the kids get from knowing the steadfast rules and routines.  I have letters from therapists and psychologists, letters from doctors from Emory, years of reports and information, safety plans… we’re trained to be strict because that’s what the kids need.

We weren’t able to get E into a public pre-K (that I approved of) this year so he’s on a waiting list at the same school Alyssa is going to.  Until then, I’m the pre-k teacher!  It’s a good thing I bought the curriculum last year when A was having so many troubles in pre-K that we had to take her out.  He’s so angry that he’s not going to school this year so it may be hit and miss with getting him to sit down for a structured “class time. “  I have yet to be successful at it but I’ll keep trying.  He already knows all the stuff anyways, he just plays dumb to see if people are paying attention.

Oh well, in 8 days, it will be Mom’s problem to play pre-K teacher and taxi driver.  She raised me and my siblings successfully so she’ll fit right in to the role.  She told me last time she watched the kids “they don’t listen very well.”  That’s crazily funny because they listen 100x better than normal kids – even better than my nephew who lives in her house.  It’s just they aren’t military brats like we were.  From the moment of birth, we knew you not only accepted the routine and chain of command, but thought it was the most natural thing on earth.

It will be interesting and fun to watch.  I’ll have to charge up the video camera and see how she handles it.  She still thinks I’m nuts for adopting three kids – but then again, if you mention her 3 kids, she gets this terrified look on her face and says “I never planned that.”   It’s great fun because she’s so incredibly good at being a mom – she just has no patience for being challenged as alpha female and she’s probably the most stubborn woman on the planet.  I was informed (yes, informed) yesterday that I was going to bring the kids to church after Amber’s birthday party because they were having a puppet show.  I asked if it was going to be one of those creepy “sin and you go to HELL” puppet shows and she said she didn’t know, she just wanted her grandbabies there.  She wants to show them off but she’s too stubborn to admit that she’s super-proud of them.  It’s so damn cute!

It has been a busy week! Things don’t stop when you go out of town… I’m just now getting really caught up from my trip to Durham! I haven’t even unpacked my laptop bag; I need to get everything out and start charging batteries!

But Monday afternoon I had to stop for a while and go see my dentist, to write the final chapter of The Tooth Chronicles*. As usual, I took my antibiotics: The American Heart Association recommends that people with certain Congenital Heart Defects (press release with basic information) take antibiotics an hour before the dental appointment.  (Here’s the full report)

We do this in an effort to avoid Endocarditis. Endocarditis is an inflammation of the lining of the heart, and it usually attacks the heart valves. And since I have had it, I am a firm believer in taking my pills! Endocarditis put me in the hospital for seven weeks, getting IV antibiotics every minute of it. Well, except for a couple of hours…

I was slurring my speech, forgetting things that just happened, and dragging a foot when I walked – and I didn’t realize it. My parents became alarmed, naturally, and mentioned it to the doctor, who looked me over and decided that I needed to have the Neurologist drop by. The Neurologist decided pretty quickly that I needed an MRI.

So I was bundled up, shipped to a different hospital – this was the late 1980’s, there wasn’t an MRI machine on every corner back then – and they ran a scan of my head. Sure enough, there it was: a silver dollar sized cyst inside my brain.

My next stop was the Operating Room. Thankfully it was not very deep and pretty straightforward – the operation started about 3:00 PM and the surgeon made it home in time for dinner. I did come out of the OR looking like Kojak, though.

After that, there was two more weeks of IV antibiotics before I was able to go home. And as often happens with Endocarditis, there was really no way for sure to tell how I had gotten the bacteria. But it can occur when a CHD survivor has dental work, so I am careful to “dose up” before I see the dentist. And it was only later that I found out that Endocarditis can lead to heart valve damage – enough to need surgery to replace the valve – and can even kill you! So if you have to see the dentist, call your cardiologist first, and get a prescription for antibiotics if you need them.

* I have an overbite; over time, my lower teeth have worn down the back of that tooth and finally exposed the root. I got the root canal and went back to my local dentist for the follow-up. He felt that it would be better to bond it rather than insert a crown.

My dentist normally takes Fridays off, so I had to wait until this morning to see him. Thankfully my local Primary Care Physician (PCP) was prescribed some pain medication, so I had a peaceful weekend. My Cardiologists in Atlanta also prescribed the antibiotics for my dental visit. (It is VERY IMPORTANT for certain CHD patients to take antibiotics before a dental appointment; click HERE to read the American Heart Association’s guidelines. Antibiotics before dental appointments can help you avoid Endocarditis!)

My dentist thinks that the tooth can be saved via Root Canal… Sort of scary to a Funky Heart with a fear of dentists and their power tools, but it has to be done. I have an appointment with a dentist who is a “root canal specialist” Thursday morning. It’s listed as a “consultation”, but I am hopeful that this dentist will just say something like “We may as well get started….” because I am ready for this problem to go away!

The heart valve disease is the outcome of defective valve function. The heart comprises of four valves that are located at the exit of each of its four chambers. These valves maintain the direction of blood flow in and out of the heart. The most crucial part about their function is that they ensure that the blood does not start flowing in reverse direction. The heart valve malfunction can result in grave life-threatening problems. The disease can occur even before birth of the baby and can develop later at any stage of life. It is also known as congenital valve disease.

The defect in the valve can be due to its incorrect size and structure, and germ infections. There are other causes also such as hypertension, heart muscle and tissue disease and syphilis. Rheumatic fever, endocarditis and mitral valve prolapse are the conditions arising from heart valve disease. The symptoms of heart valve disease are difficulty in breathing, extreme weakness, feeling of suffocation, heart beat irregularity and speeded weight gain. It is not necessary that every sufferer would experience these symptoms, some feel them and some not. That does not mean that those who don’t experience these symptoms are not under risk. The severity of symptoms can’t judge the seriousness of this disease.

Diagnosis of heart valve disease is done with the help of symptoms, physical test and other tests like echocardiography, magnetic resonance imaging, radionuclide tests and angiogram. The tests can be repeated inorder to get confirmed accurate results. The defective valves are treated by surgical repair or complete valve replacement. But before any surgery, the effected valves are protected from further damage. If possible, medications like diuretics, vasodilators blood anticoagulants and thinner, are also provided. These may go life-long. The heart specialist studies the case thoroughly and decides the best possible treatment for that particular case as every case is different.

Jennie Marie Wood and her husband Wilfred James Hill

Jennie Marie Wood was born August 1879 in Forest Township, Genesee County, Michigan to Abner Wood, a farmer, and Harriet Fenner. Jennie was the eighth of eleven children born to the couple.

At the age of 19, Jennie Wood married 32 year old Wilford James Hill on November 13, 1898 in Flint, Genesee County, Michigan.  The couple remained in Forest Township, having four daughters: May Rosa on August 1899; Tillie Irene on August 24, 1901; Hazel Pearl on April 21, 1904; and Winnifred on January 21, 1907. All four children lived to adulthood.

According to my grandfather, Wilford J Hill was a mean old cuss and an alcoholic. Also according to my grandfather and my great aunt, Jennie Wood Hill was having an affair with her sister’s husband, Allen Carr. The story goes that one day while Al and Jennie were having a fling, Allen’s pregnant wife (& Jennie’s sister) was out in the woods gathering kindling when something spooked the horse she had. She somehow got dragged to death as a result.

Jennie Wood (center) and her daughter May Pettit (right)

Primary records tell a similar, but slightly different story. Allen Floyd Carr did marry Jennie’s older sister Mary “May” Wood in 1900. On January 24, 1916, Mary Wood Carr died of Endocarditis as a result of a premature birth. The death record does not state that any sort of injury led to the premature birth, but I suppose it is possible. Mary died in Elba, Lapeer County, Michigan and is buried in Union Cemetery in Richfield Township near her father Abner and near her son, Leo. However, her stone reads “May G. Carr.”

According to the 1920 census, Jennie M. Hill lived with Allen Carr and his children in Lapeer, Michigan, while Wilford James Wood lived in Genesee, Michigan with his two youngest daughters. Although they are living separately, Jennie and Wilford are still listed as ‘married.”

In the 1930 census, Jennie Hill is listed as living with Allen Carr and his son Leo, but has the status of “single” while Allen has the status of “married.” In 1930, Wilfred Hill lived with his widowed daughter Winnifred Theilen and had the status “divorced.”

Allen Carr & Jennie Wood - August 1964

According to my mother, who also heard stories from her parents and great aunt, Jennie Wood seemed to abandon her life and children with Wilfred Hill for a life with Allen Carr. Despite this, her daughters adored her, especially my great-grandmother Hazel Pearl Carter.

Jennie Marie Wood and Allen Floyd Carr remained together for the rest of their lives, but never married. According to stories from family members (which should always be taken with a grain of salt), Allen Carr had a fidelity problem and as an older man had actually gotten a 16 year old woman pregnant. Regardless, (again, according to family stories) Jennie Wood was completely devoted to Al Carr, saying that she would “walk through hell for that man.”

Jennie Marie Wood died on February 2, 1967 in Flint, Genesee County, Michigan.

Here’s what Sherry Brescia, author of Great Taste, No Pain has to say about the spleen’s function.

The spleen is an organ about the size of your fist and
sits on the left side of your body, under the rib cage.
It’s part of the lymphatic system.      

Now if you’re like most people, you know of the lymphatic
system (especially when you have swollen glands) but you’re
not 100% sure what it does.  

So first here’s a very brief biology lesson about the
lymphatic system:

================
Lymphatic System
================

Your lymphatic system is like a staff of maids and
housekeepers inside your body.

This staff is made up of countless nodes and glands, the
thymus gland, the thoracic duct, the spleen, bone marrow,
tonsils and miles of lymphatic vessels.  

These lymphatic vessels contain 3 times more lymph fluid
than blood–that alone should tell you how important the
lymphatic system is.

The maids and housekeepers do their job by filtering and
purifying your bloodstream, cleansing wastes from your
tissues, organs and 100 trillion cells, and searching out
and destroying any harmful invaders that might enter your
body.

Then they gather the wastes and, just like dumping dirty
dishwater down the sink, they bring the wastes to one of
your body’s four “exits”–the lungs, skin, bladder and
bowels–for elimination from your body.  

The lymphatic system is truly the heart of the immune
system because of its vital role in keeping your body clean
and destroying dangerous substances and antigens.

Now on to the spleen.

==========
The Spleen
==========

Your spleen has many important functions including:

* Filtering out and destroying old and damaged blood cells
* Helping to prevent infection by producing white blood
cells (called lymphocytes) that act as a first line of
defense against invading viruses, bacteria and other
pathogens
* Storing blood and platelets (the cells that help your
blood clot)
* Acting as an intermediary between your immune system and
your brain

As you can see, your spleen is not something you want to
be stressed or not working right.  Your state of health
depends heavily on your body’s ability to fight infections,
and your spleen plays a vital role in that process.

===============
Enlarged Spleen
===============

Sometimes the spleen can become enlarged, which
compromises the functioning of your lymphatic system.

One of the most common causes of an enlarged spleen is
infectious mononucleosis (“mono”), but it can be caused by
these factors as well:

- Bacterial infections, such as syphilis or an infection
of your heart’s inner lining (endocarditis)
- Parasitic infections, such as malaria
- Cirrhosis and other diseases of the liver
- Hemolytic anemia – a condition characterized by
premature destruction of red blood cells
- Blood cancers, such as leukemia and Hodgkin’s disease
- Acidity in the body

As your spleen gets larger, it begins to mess up and
filter out the good, normal red blood cells as well as
abnormal ones.  This reduces the number of healthy cells in
your bloodstream.

It also traps too many platelets.  Eventually, the excess
blood cells and platelets can clog up your spleen, further
interfering with its normal functioning.

Another risk with an enlarged spleen is possible rupture.
A ruptured spleen can cause life-threatening bleeding into
your abdominal cavity, and the release of toxic wastes
throughout your body.

==================
Spleen and Acidity
==================

Like all of your organs, your spleen is designed to
function best in an alkaline environment.

When your body is acidic, you place an impossible burden
on the spleen to do its job, and it can eventually become
enlarged or simply slow way down.  

A poorly functioning spleen can reduce the number of
healthy red blood cells, platelets and white cells in your
bloodstream, so you can develop anemia or increased
bleeding.  

You also become susceptible to frequent, dangerous, or
even life-threatening infections.

=========================
Keep Your Spleen Alkaline
=========================

Good spleen health is yet another great reason to keep
your body as alkaline as possible.  ALL of your organs work
best when your body is alkaline, and the spleen is no
exception.

<Are you starting to see a recurring theme here? I hope so.>

If you want to enjoy any measure of good health, live pain-
free with little or no need for medications and enjoy life
well into your golden years, you must commit to eating to
minimize the acidity in your body.

It’s not a question of if…you must do this to have good
health.

Your body is alkaline by design, and the best way to keep
it alkaline is to eat mainly alkaline foods (at least 60-
70%) and correctly combine all of your meals.

Great Taste No Pain shows you how easy that is.

http://www.greattastenopain.com/cmdt.asp?id=943215

GTNP spells out exactly which foods are acid-creating and
which are alkaline, so you can easily make sure you’re
getting the right ratio.  

It has charts that list what foods you can pair up
together, so you can continue to eat many of your
favorites, and your meal planning will be a cinch.

Plus the recipe book will give you 112 delectable reasons
to be glad you are eating for great health.

To your health,

Sherry Brescia

PS:  Ila said goodbye to 62 years of digestive pain:

*******************

Dear Sherry,

I am 71 yrs. old and have had digestive problems since I
was probably 8 or 9 years old.  I’ve never had any help,
nothings worked.  

Recently I wouldn’t go to the doctor and my husband
threatened to call 911, that’s how much pain I was in.

I decided to go on the internet and see what I could find,
and thank God, I found your site  http://www.greattastenopain.com/cmdt.asp?id=943215
I was skepical, but hurting bad, so I sent for your
program.

When I received it, I had to adjust it for my husband.  He
has chronic kidney disease, but by making sure of the fluid
intake, we are both on it.

In two days I was pain free, and I’m feeling better every
day.  I have energy I haven’t had in years.  

I’m telling all my friends about it and that it’s no big
fuss to eat this way–it’s things I’ve always loved, I just
needed to combine them right.

My daughter’s an R.N. and she’s a health nut, she’s so
happy we’re eating right.  It’s really easier to prepare
these meals than the way we used to eat.

I call this my labor of love, love of life and love of my
man.

Thank you again Sherry, God Bless you.

Sincerely,
                                                           
Ila Mousseau

Source: Infections in Medicine 26(2) 49-57.

Year of publication: 2009

Publication type: Journal Article

In a nutshell:  Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) must be recognized now as one of the most common causes of infections acquired in the community. In addition, serious invasive and often fatal episodes of necrotizing pneumonia, necrotizing fasciitis, endocarditis, and sepsis are being reported with increased frequency. Therefore, rapid diagnostic tests and new therapeutic agents are urgently needed for the early detection and management of these infections. Recognition of at-risk persons and implementation of infection control strategies are strongly emphasized and encouraged by the most important regulatory institutions. The approach to community-acquired MRSA infections has become a challenge to physicians.

Some important notes: Ask your local health librarian to get hold of this for you (not available electronically as part of national core content).

So, I usually forget that I have a heart problem, but then every few years I get a friendly reminder from God. This time it came in the form of a pain in my left side. The pain was…unbearable. It was hunch-over, cry, pop the tylenol pain. I went to a walk-in clinic where I was diagnosed with a bladder infection (while showing no bladder infection symptoms). The prescribed antibiotics did nothing, and the next day I went to my community hospital, where I was diagnosed with a pulled muscle. “Which muscle?” I asked the doctor. “I don’t remember what it’s called.” ahhh anatomy. I was fairly unconvinced that he knew what he was talking about, and I must have implied this, so he grudgingly booked me for an abdominal ultrasound.

The pain subsided over the weekend so I thought maybe he was right about the pulled muscle. I was going to skip the ultrasound on the Monday as I had racked up too many sick days at work and was being threatened with a sacking (CHD is apparently not a good reason to stay home from work with the flu?) HOWEVER, God must have known something was amiss, and gave me us a snow day, so I didn’t have to work and got to go in for the ultrasound. MY GP called me about 2 hours later with the news that my spleen was enlarged and had a spot on it. Also, my haemoglobin was low. So I googled this, and it looked like I probably had Leukemia (which I was always convinced would happen, though my mom tried to convince me it wouldn’t, as I already had enough health problems that I probably wouldn’t get cancer…God’s wouldn’t throw that many trials at me).

So the doctor thought this was probably the result of some kind of a bump or bruise, but I was convinced it was Leukemia. I didn’t feel much better when the pain came back, with a vengeance, the next day. This time it was a bit higher, and was causing muscles all over my back to spasm. After two days of this I finally went into the emergency room at the regional hospital (where they actually know what they’re doing) and after a litany of tests including pee, blood and nuclear stuff, they realized that I had a “vegetation” as a result of some bacteria which made it to my heart. A bit of this vegetation embolised and made its way to my spleen, thus causing me said pain. I can only assume I was very lucky it went to one of the useless organs, rather than to my brain.

So I spent a week in hospital, which made me incredibly happy, and I say that without even a little bit of sarcasm. When you associate the hospital with time off from school/work, lots of stuffed animals, attention, cable tv and popsicles/jello, you start to look forward to it. Plus the nurses always love me because I’m always the only one on the ward under age 65. I got a week’s worth of antibiotics every 4 hours for 7 days, and now I’m back home, with a lovely home care nurse visiting me daily the serve me up with some antibiotics for the next 3 weeks.

Since I’m supposed to take the next 6 weeks off work (but not likely to happen), I thought it might give me a good chance to tell my story! (But don’t get too excited because I usually forget about these things after a week or so.)

UGH!

I’m late, I know I’m late… the hernia has been in a bad mood. I’ve spent plenty of time stretched out on the couch with a heating pad today. But the hernia is not going to win. I am going to win, and Mr. Hernia needs to realize this and just start playing nice!

We’ve got a lot of new links that have been building up, so there is plenty for you to read tonight. First of all, here’s a cool 3-D model of the heart used to prep for surgery.  It’s a computer model of the patient’s actual heart… study it, turn it, look at from every angle, and there is less chance of nasty surprises happening during the actual surgery!

Think fast! Five Congenital Heart Defects present Cyanosis early in life, and all start with the letter T. Can you name them? The answers are below.

By studying Chicken Hearts we can learn something about human hearts!

Here’s another surgery simulator! This one is tough, if you mess up here, call your lawyer!

China hasn’t been taking care of it’s environment, and it is coming back to haunt them. Chinese families are getting crushed, too.

Here’s a long post on Infective Endocarditis (split into three parts! Make sure to note the last paragraph in the third box!) Endocarditis is something you don’t want to mess with, but you’re more susceptible to it if you have a heart defect.

Barney Fife used to say that “We have to nip it in the bud, Andy!” He’d love this: Heart surgery done BEFORE the child is born!

Answer to the question above: The five blue T’s are: Tetralogy (of Fallot); Transposition (of the Great Arteries); Truncus Arteriosus; Total Anomalous Pulmonary Venous Return; and Tricuspid Atresia!

Widespread salmonella contamination feared in products containing peanut butter

By Lisa Wade McCormick
ConsumerAffairs.com

Another company has recalled some of its products as the nationwide salmonella outbreak continues to grow. The Michigan-based Meijer company on Monday recalled two types of peanut butter crackers and two types of peanut butter ice cream sold in its stores and gas stations in Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Kentucky.

The company took the action after the products’ manufacturers said they could be contaminated with salmonella. Meijer recalled the following products:

• Meijer Cheese and Peanut Butter Sandwich Crackers, UPC #0-41250-56235
• Meijer Toasty Peanut Butter Sandwich Crackers, UPC #0-41250-56239
• Meijer Peanut Butter and Jelly Ice Cream, UPC #00000007-19283-96635-3
• Meijer Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream, UPC #00000007-19283-96843-2

FOR THE COMPLETE STORY: http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2009/01/pb_king_recall04.html
~Sandy G.

Yes, the misspelling is intentional – read this post to learn why!

There are THREE new Cardiac Kids in the blogroll -Luke,  Nathan and Casey! I’ve also put a link to my interview of Adult Congenital Heart Association (ACHA) President Amy Verstappen in the blogroll – I posted it on October 1st, so it has been off the front page for quite a while now. But it is the most popular post I’ve ever written by far, and probably the most important – for both Heart Warriors (Adults with CHD) and Cardiac Kids. It seems someone clicks on it every single day, so I’ve linked it to the front page to make it easy to find. Also, be sure to check out the blogroll links marked RESEARCH for the latest in CHD news and clinical trials!

It was a Sunday morning. I had been in the hospital almost all summer with Endocarditis, which is not a fun way to spend the summer! Nobody knew then – and we still don’t know – how I got Endocarditis. One of the most common ways for a heart patient to get it is through dental work without taking the prescribed antibiotics, but that didn’t apply to me since I hadn’t had any dental work done recently. No matter how I got it, the cure was six weeks of IV drip antibiotics. *sigh* So there I was, in the hospital with a needle in my arm, for SIX WEEKS.

Thankfully, I was stupid. I had no idea that Endocarditis can do strange, unusual, and occasionally fatal things to your body! If the Endocardits attacks and damages one of your heart valves (one of their favorite places to lurk) you could need surgery to get it replaced. It can – I learned later, thankfully – kill you. And a certain percentage of patients may develop a cyst in their brain.

Guess who got the cyst.

The treatment for that is surgical removal of the cyst, followed by six more weeks of IV antibiotics. I was not pleased at all, but what choice did I have? The brain operation was “simple” as far as brain operations go. Usually you hear of people having brain surgery being kept awake, but that wasn’t so in my case. They just knocked me out, took out the cyst, and sewed me up. The surgeon started at 3 PM and was home for dinner.

Six weeks does not fly by while you are in a hospital, that’s for sure. But I was out, back home, my hair was growing back, and all was well in the world. It was a Sunday morning and I had just stepped out of the shower, and was leaning against my dresser as I put on my underwear.

And I woke up in an ambulance?

The doctors determined that I had a seizure – brought on by the removal of that cyst. It’s a possible side effect; the scar tissue in my brain basically causes me to “turn off” at times. I don’t show the symptoms of a typical Grand Mal seizure, I usually just pass out. The doctors set me up with a prescription of Dialantin to control the seizures.

Dilantin requires you to take a pretty sizable “loading dose” to get things started, and after that, the doctors have to fine tune it to your system. You obviously need enough to help you, but not so much that the side effects start kicking in. They warn you to stay alert, this could happen again.

It did. I happened to be squatting down looking into an open storm drain at the time… and instead of falling forward (which the laws of physics and gravity should have caused) I fell backwards. I like to think my Guardian Angel gave me a little shove!

But ever since I got my Dilantin regulated, I haven’t had a seizure… it’s been 10 years plus! In fact, a Neurologist said that if I wanted to, I could quit taking the Dilantin and “see what happened.” Ummm… no, thanks. I’m not big on taking medication unless I have to, but I’ve seem what might happen. So I’ll stick with my Dilantin.

Tell you what, doc: You pass out and ricochet off a dresser and a chair as you fall, and get back to me on that idea!

Rinse with water.

Floss.

Rinse with a pre-brush mouthwash.

Brush my teeth.

Rinse with water.

Use mouthwash.

And I even have a gadget that sanitizes my toothbrush with UV light. Am I a little bit paranoid? Well, yeah… but I’ve fought endocarditis. And that is no fun.

Endocarditis is when the inner lining of your heart becomes inflamed, usually the heart valves. It can be either infective Endocarditis or non infective Endocarditis, depending on if a microorganism is causing the problem or not. And one of the more common ways to get it is when bacteria enters the body through a mouth wound, usually through a recent dental procedure.

I hadn’t had any dental work recently, but I was still feeling run down and out of sorts. So we skipped the local hospital and went straight over to Providence Hospital in Columbia. My temperature was up, and they knew I had something, but wasn’t sure exactly what. So they admitted me and gave me a general menu of antibiotics to try to bring the fever down.

It didn’t work – in fact, a few days later my temperature hit 103. And that is when one of the doctors mentioned the phrase “Cooling Blanket.” Trust me, you don’t want to be issued a Cooling Blanket.

The Cooling Blanket goes right above the sheet on your bed, and it has several long, thin tubes running through it. Saltwater is pumped through the tubes to cool the blanket, and the patient below it. They use saltwater because you can cool saltwater to below 32 degrees before it freezes.

The Cooling Blanket was as cold as it could go, and to make it even better (or worse), the doc turned my air conditioner on full blast and shut the door. Columbia was in the middle of one of the warmest summers in recent memory, but it felt like a Chicago Christmas in my room. The only thing missing was the wind coming off the lake.

Finally the blood cultures came back – the first culture had accidentally been contaminated, they had to do it again – and they determined that I did have Endocarditis after all. The cure for that is four weeks of antibiotics. Endocarditis is like a bad penny, it just won’t go away.

Oh, boy.

About the third week of this I was having trouble. My brother noticed it first; when I walked, I was sliding one foot rather than lifting it. I didn’t even realize it. After my short term memory get bad and I started slurring my words, they moved me over to another hospital, where they had an MRI scanner.

My scan was at 1:00 PM, and by 3:00 PM I had been admitted to the second hospital and being prepared for surgery. Surgery?!?! Somebody’s got some ’splaining to do! Turns out a small percentage of Endocarditis patients can develop a cyst in their brain as a result of the infection, and I was holding the lucky ticket.

The cyst was the size of a Kennedy Half Dollar, but it came out easily. All we need to do now is have some more antibiotics…three more weeks worth.

Oh, boy (part 2). But what are you going to do? I was to the point of chanting “Endo’s gotta go!” and this was the only way to get rid of it. So I gritted my teeth and put up with it. Needless to say, they had shaved my head for the operation, so I spent the next few weeks looking like Lex Luthor. And only after I made it back home did I learn that certain forms of Endocarditis has a 20% death rate!

So take my advice, ACHDer’s and Cardiac Kids: Take care of your teeth, and ask your dentist to prescribe any needed antibiotics before dental appointments!

When you have a Congenital Heart Defect, nearly every medical event in your life is affected by it. Even having your wisdom teeth pulled.

Before I go to see the dentist, he has to prescribe antibiotics to help prevent Endocarditis. Usually the drug is Amoxicillin, since I am not allergic to Penicillin. An hour before my appointment I am to take SIX large capsules of the drug, and follow it with two capsule taken six hours afterward. I take my drugs exactly on time, because I have dealt with Endocarditis before. To say that it is not fun is like saying that a nuclear explosion could cause a slight disturbance.

So I pop my pills and go see my local dentist. The cleaning goes well, then in comes the dentist. He is masked and gloved up with a face shield. I remember the pre-AIDS days, when he would just come in, wash and dry his hands, plop down on the stool and get to work. That will probably never happen again.

Everything is going well when he suddenly says “Hmm….” I hate it when they say that that. “Hmm….” is doctor code for “Ut-oh.”

“Problem?”

“Looks like you need to have these wisdom teeth removed.”

Oh, great. I hate going to the dentist. Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against him personally, as far as I know he is a nice guy who loves his wife and coaches Little League. But his occupation has never impressed me and now he wants to start chopping.

“Ok, doc, can we do it today?” Let’s get this over with.

“Not on your life. I’m sending you to an Oral Surgeon.”

My dentist has always be very cautious about working on me, which I appreciate. But if I have to have this done, I want to get it done ASAP. So after a week of waiting and jaw pain (which very well might be imagined) I’m off to see the Oral Surgeon.

“Your local dentist has forwarded your records and we have spoken on the phone,” he says. “Because of your heart, we’ll do the procedure at the hospital and I’ll admit you overnight.”

Well, I’m not a fan of the hospital either, but if it has to be done, so be it. “How about anesthetic?” I ask. “You’ve got to be careful because I have low blood oxygen.”

“I don’t plan to knock you out,” he says, “but we’ll give you enough to keep the pain away. You’ll probably doze off.”

The wisdom tooth extraction took place in one of the operating rooms with everyone and everything fully sterile. True to his word, the Happy Juice the doc gave me had me quite drowsy. it also made me slap happy — I told his nurse that she had beautiful blue eyes (she did!) and I’m pretty sure I even proposed to her!

As the surgeon predicted, I dozed off and woke up several times during the extraction, but I was too loopy to care about much of anything. Once I woke up to find the doc across the room, with someone holding a phone to his ear. Uh, doc… I’m over here! I thought. Deciding that I was just dreaming, I dozed off again.

I woke up with my mouth full of gauze and the doctor leaning over me, dressed in his street clothes. “Everything went great,” the doctor said. “We’ll keep you overnight and if there are no problems, you’ll be released about noon tomorrow. I’m not going to speak to your parents because I have to go. Someone was kicked in the face by a cow and they need emergency surgery.”

And I thought that I was having a bad day!