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Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Who's up for a PET scan?

So a few days ago I did a PET scan to find out how much blockage I have in my heart.
First of all a PET scan could be used for many things but in my case it was the heart.  They tell you to avoid all caffeine including soda, coffee, and chocolate for 24 hours.  Then 4 hours before the procedure you cannot eat or drink anything.

You get to the office and they first set you up on an I.V. drip with some nuclear chemical.  They let this collect in the organ of choice for 10-20 minutes or so.  They make you lay down on a table and then you put your hands up over your head.  They insert most of you (about chin high) into this tube that most resembles an MRI scanner.  You lay there trying to be still while they take images of your heart at rest.

Then they injected me with a stress chemical that simulates what the heart does under stress conditions like exercise, and then they take more images.  The scary thing about the stress agent is that it constricts all your blood vessels at once.  It makes you light headed, short of breath, causes chest pain, chest tightness, and sometimes nausea and palpitations.  I got most of those, but not all.  The good thing is, that feeling only lasted for about a minute or two and then it passed. 

After that they inject you with more nuclear chemical and see how your heart's doing.  This whole process took about 2 hours and I was very glad when it was over.  The stress agent made me feel like I was having a panic attack and I hate that feeling.

The doctor is supposed to be calling here any day now.  It's already been 3 business days today, so if I don't hear from him by tomorrow, he'll be getting a phone call.
I hope you guys never have to do a test like this, just for the amount of radiation alone.

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