Tuesday evening, December 9 I was in the basement in our home on Aspen
Street in Philadelphia working on my model trains. I was not exerting
myself. At around 5 pm an episode of chest and throat tightness and
palpitations came on me. I began to feel poorly. I stopped what I was
doing and decided to try a short walk outdoors with our dog to see if
the air and walking might help me feel better until the episode passed.
However, I still felt bad after returning from the walk. In addition to
the chest and throat pressure and malaise, I noticed some problem with
the peripheral vision in my right eye. I sat on our sofa and alerted Dan
that I was in distress and that I felt it advisable to go to an ER
that specializes in stroke. We discussed the options in terms of
hospitals. We opted to take a taxi cab to HUP, the hospital of the
university of the University of Penn Pennsylvania, since we are familiar
with it. Upon arriving at the ER I explained my condition and I
received immediate attention. I was in significant discomfort but a
nurse provided me with two Nitro-Glycerin pills. These made me feel much
better. A blood sample was drawn and I was placed in an observation
room for the night.
Wednesday morning, December 10 at 4 AM I was admitted to the hospital
and given a room 1169 in the CICU (Cardiac Intermediate Care Unit) on
the 11th floor of HUP. I was put on a variety of anti-coagulants
including an IV Heparin drip, and Plavix and Aspirin orally. Blood tests
had revealed a level of Troponin, an indicator of heart muscle damage
or stress. Weary from the episode and lack of sleep, I tried to get naps
whenever I could. I was scheduled for tests including an
echocardiogram, which I got Wednesday morning, and a heart
catheterization. Being out of my room for most of the day, I missed the
visit of the care team and so I was lacking information about my
condition. Later my nurse told me that my troponin levels were trending
up. In the afternoon I was taken to the cath lab and prepped for the
procedure. However, when my attending Cardiologist, Dr. Witlack, learned
from me about my vision abnormality that I reported as happening at the
same time as my cardiac episode, he decided to have the vision issue
evaluated prior to the heart cath for safety in case there could be
loose embolisms floating somewhere. So the next test I had was a CT scan
of my brain. That ended the tests for the day so I was finally able to
eat a small meal, my first solid food since Tuesday mid day.
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