nuclear stress test anyone?

[conceit]

hey all, have any of you had a nuclear stress test? the doctor ordered a persantine mibi scan, so it was the pharmaceutical one. and boy did it cause side effects. i was told it may cause shortness of breath, chest heaviness or pain, nausea, headache etc. i had the chest heaviness to the point of pain, shortness of breath and flushing. it wasn't fun.

i asked the tech if it'd be better the test were stopped because i had somewhat rapid breathing and chest pain. she pointed at the ECG she ran throughout and said it looked great, that my BP was fine (started at 120/67 went up to 140/78) and my symptoms were just from the medicine and would resolve after i was given the antidote. they did resolve soon after i got the antidote. i read a study (didn't reach statistical significance and only 15 subjects) that chest pain after receiving the persantine means there's a higher risk of CAD. i asked the tech about it, and she said that wasn't true. i am leaning in the direction she was likely right.

but i have such a strong family history of CAD plus being fat and having diabetes doesn't help. so i have been worried. i am trying not to worry too much in advance of the results, fwiw.

as for why i had the stress test, my shortness of breath hasn't subsided. my Hb is 10.4 (up from 5. something), but i still have shortness of breath when exerting even lightly and chest tightness/heaviness from time to time. main difference is i had shortness of breath even at rest when my anemia was really bad, before the transfusion. now it happens when i walk. i just don't want to assume it's anemia until tests have been run and eliminate other probable causes.

i am also extremely fatigued to the point where getting off my bed is a chore. i still do my leslie sansone walks and stretching, try to really muster the strength and keep my body moving. but if i am being honest with myself, i have to admit i have never in my life been this utterly fatigued beyond reason. i really want to get to the root of all this before the DS. better safe than sorry.

so i was curious if anyone else had chest pain from the medication used in persantine mibi scans to mimic exercise?

 

[Spiky Bugger]

I don’t know that I’d call it “pain.” And nothing post-procedure.

But the first time, I was pretty sure I was having a real heart attack and was about to die. Subsequent tests,
I knew what to expect.

 

[conceit]

Oh okay. Yeah it does feel pretty bed, eh?
I felt it as heaviness initially, but for me it got to the point where it started hurting. Was I glad when the antidote was injected...*phew*

 

[southernlady]

Yeah, my first one was like, OMG, I’m gonna die right here from a heart attack. Now that I know, while it’s hurts, it’s not scary.

 

[k9ophile]

My reaction wasn't as strong as "I'm gonna die!" There was some discomfort, but bearable. Just another one of those "we all react different" kind of things.

 

[conceit]

Good to know it can hurt and wasn't just me

I can tolerate the headache shortness of breath the nausea the flushing just fine. It was the painful heaviness in my chest that was getting to me, likely because it was making me think damn I am so screwed. This must mean my heart is a mess instead of thinking it's a transient symptom. Even though, rationally I knew that was far more likely to be true more so after the antidote resolved my issues almost immediately.

But it's very true as you guys said it's patient dependent. I am sure there are patients who feel exactly how I did and ride it out just fine.

I am impressed by the people who have no side effects at all. That's pretty amazing.