[Rhodes22-list] I'm back from the hospital

[ROGER PIHLAJA]

Graham,

Yes, I have been on Xarelto blood thinner since 2018.  While I understand why I need to take an anticoagulant, the downside is that you bruise easily and bleed like a hemophiliac from every minor cut.

I expect to on Tikosyn for the foreseeable future.

I am cautiously optimistic today.  Life is good!

Roger Pihlaja
S/V Dynamic Equilibrium 


Sent from my iPhone

> On Jun 5, 2021, at 9:39 AM, Graham Stewart <gstewart8 at cogeco.ca> wrote:
> 
> Roger:
> 
> Good to hear that the procedure went well. It is amazing what they are able
> to do on an apparently routine, for them, basis. You must be relieved and it
> sounds like you are getting back to normal very quickly.
> 
> I am going to look up Tikosyn as it sounds like an amazing drug. I assume
> that you will be taking it on an ongoing basis. Are you also on
> anticoagulants?
> 
> Graham Stewart
> Agile, Rodes 22, 1976
> Kingston Ontario
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Rhodes22-list [mailto:rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org] On Behalf Of
> ROGER PIHLAJA
> Sent: Saturday, June 5, 2021 6:45 AM
> To: The Rhodes 22 Email List
> Subject: [Rhodes22-list] I'm back from the hospital
> 
> Hi All,
> 
> The 3 day Tikosyn loading procedure went pretty well.  They took their best
> guess as to an appropriate dose and I responded well.  When I checked in on
> Tuesday morning, the initial EKG showed me going in and out of A-Fib.  The
> data logs from my implanted pacemaker showed I was in A-Fib ~50% of the
> time!  When they started dosing me with Tikosyn, I reverted back to normal
> sinus rhythm almost immediately.  They didn't have to do an electrical
> cardiac inversion (i.e. shock treatment!) to get my heart back into normal
> sinus rhythm.  They were also prepared to do another cardiac ablation and
> upgrade my implanted pacemaker from a 2 lead to a 3 lead unit.  If they had
> to do that, the cardiac ablation would have been used to kill off all the
> remaining biological pacemaker cells and completely rely on the upgraded
> pacemaker.  It may come to that in the future.  But, for the moment we're
> going to stick with the 2 lead pacemaker and Tikosyn.  They also did an
> ultrasonic echo cardiogram to determine how enlarged my heart has gotten
> after all this A-Fibbing and measure the volume % ejected.  These
> measurements will be needed for the procedure next week.  I was hooked up to
> a wireless cardiac monitor for the entire 3 days I was in the hospital.  So,
> they were monitoring my heart function constantly while I was getting loaded
> up on Tikosyn.  By the morning of the 2nd day of Tikosyn loading, my
> wireless cardiac monitor showed I was in normal sinus rhythm and didn't
> glitch once from then on!
> 
> I actually feel much better.  But, lying about in a hospital is one thing
> and actually living a normal life is another.  So, for an initial cardiac
> insult test,  I mowed my front lawn yesterday.  I felt OK afterwards.  I was
> also climbing up on a ladder measuring the length of my mast for Allyn,
> again with no apparent ill effects.
> 
> I'm scheduled for another COVID-19 test this Sunday.  Then, I have to
> quarantine until I go into the hospital on June 10th for a cardiac
> catheterization procedure.  If nothing goes crooked, this will be a 1 day
> out patient procedure.   But, this is exploratory laparoscopic surgery. They
> might have to keep me longer depending on what they find &/or if something
> goes crooked with the procedure itself.  Thanks for all the kind wishes and
> please keep me in your prayers.
> 
> Roger Pihlaja
> S/V Dynamic Equilibrium
> 
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>