Question for medical people

[ShinyGreenApple]

A friend of mine at work had a heart attack a few days ago, and today I understand that she has 99% blockage in her heart. She's 37. My main problem is, while the hospital kept her for a few nights and she was told she needs bypass surgery, she has been released and was walking around IN THE STORE today, omg. Her Mom was with her and they were picking up prescriptions, but um . . . is it really a good idea to discharge someone with that kind of blockage? She kept having to lean on things and was sweating.

Is this really normal to do with that kind of patient? I just think she'd be safer in a hospital as opposed to walking around the cesspool of stress that is Volde-Mart.

[Amina516]

Theres several factors here that can make the answer vary.

She knows she has a 99% blockage, so that means she most likely had a heart catheterization. Did they do an intervention while they were in there such as a stent to the artery or angioplasty? That can make it so that it delays surgery for a while.

It sounds like they prescribed her some stuff..most likely a blood thinner and a cholesterol medication. These can be used to manage her condition and are effective. Also, depending on which blood vessel is clogged up, the procedure she probably had done can show if the heart has grown some collateral circulation, meaning the heart has grown more vessels to try and bypass the blocked area. If they saw that her heart muscle is being fed despite the blockage, that may be another reason she was sent home.

And of course, the answer i hate but it may also be due to insurance, who may or may not authorize a stay in the hospital until surgery can be had. Is she scheduled for a surgery?

Im also thinking she should stay out of walmart and hang at home until things are worked out. If her symptoms (such as leaning and sweating) are what she was doing before and the doctor was aware, then that sounds like her norm. However, if these things are new, she should consult a doctor.

*This is not to be used to diagnose her. For informational purposes only. Please tell her to talk to her doctor with questions. *

[TheMike]

Heck my dad was out canoeing the day before his scheduled bypass (which turned into a triple!) and he was about 60 then...

from what I understand the more active you can be, the faster, and more likely, you will recover.

[ShinyGreenApple]

I don't think she had any stints or anything put in during her stay, and I'm fairly sure the surgery is scheduled for sometime next week. She was in Volde-Mart for the medicine, since it's a supercenter and we have a Pharmacy. She also said she was going to talk to management while she was there, to arrange a LOA, which she'll need, obviously.

When she had the attack, she said she was doing the textbook shortness of breath, crushing feeling in the chest, and extreme sweating.

On a normal day she's fairly energetic and isn't constantly looking for something to use as a prop. She does have a really 'short fuse', personality wise though, so the less human interaction she has would probably be best, lol. It really doesn't take much for her to get pissed off to high heavens and she won't back down from a confrontation, she's just high-strung like that.