Holy crap!
I had a blood clot near the edge of my lung after I broke my leg and was very low mobility for the first couple of weeks due to lack of pain management. The doctors said it travelled from my leg up through my bloodstream where it sat near my lung making breathing difficult. Seeing one this size is insane.
Catheter up through my groin. I had to be awake when they took it out. I had to take deep breaths and hold them while they extracted it in 3 sections. So uncomfortable feeling that catheter hitting my heart/lungs.
The teeth clenched inhale I just had reading this makes me hope I never ever have to have something like this done…
And that is while I am sitting here waiting to get the MRI where they inject fluid into the shoulder socket so they can better see the ligaments and shit because I am pretty sure I have a torn labrum and my doctor thinks it might be the trifecta of labrum, rotator cuff, and also possible an upper bicep ligament tear (having middle and index finger, and thumb nerve twinges which he says can be indicative of that tear for some reason). So I might be sliced open for full shoulder reconstruction before the end of the year…
Done this one to. Big needle! Not too painful though. Just a feeling of a “full” shoulder. The thing that caught me off guard was just how small MRI machines are. That things like a coffin! Also don’t breathe too heavy!
As one that hates needles… thanks for the reminder 🤣
I honestly am not too worried about getting in the machine, but what I am worried about is if I’ll fall asleep in it, and move ruining the image. It is a long scan doing nothing…🤣
You won’t see the needle unless you want to.
They offered me music but it never started to I got to listen to the machine hum for 20 mins or so. Did 2 slightly different angles as well. Luckily for me, other than a small hole in the labrum (which may or may not be normal for me) there was nothing else “wrong”, just rest and recuperation. Good luck and pick some good tunes!
Hahaha, I will definitely be looking the other way 😅
I am the king of falling asleep to anything my ADHD brain starts to register as white noise. That is why I am pretty sure I could pass out in the machine; I have fallen asleep while a dentist was drilling in my mouth… I am a weirdo…
It is scheduled for July 5th. I actually had to postpone it because I got sick this week, and wasn’t gonna bring a cold into a medical office that sees a lot of immunocompromised (cancer) patients.
If I remember I’ll try to come back and let you know!
It’s really loud and sounds like it’s tearing itself apart/about to blow up. I couldn’t hear the music, and figured if the tech wasn’t worried about the noises then I shouldn’t.
If you fall asleep and move they will just wake you and restart the sequence. MRI exams are split up into sections called sequences. Each sequence is 2-8 minutes long depending on MRI machine.
Just remember between the time you get the injection into the joint space and the imaging don't move your arm very much. Want to get the fluid in the joint space as much as possible.
Literally just had this done to my shoulder too. Giving blood hurts more, you barely feel the needle. They give you some local anesthesia in the joint first so honestly it's pretty painless. I hate needles too.... Makes me pass out. I just closed my eyes and was surprised when the doc said it was already over
If you have never had shoulder surgery before: Get a recliner because it is the only place you will get sleep (you can't roll over), get Velcro sneakers because you cant tie shoes, practice eating and WIPING YOUR BUTT with the other hand because it is not easy, start taking something like Metamucil or Mirilax a few days before surgery because the pain meds and anesthesia will bind you up bad.
I had what sounds like the same injury you had (Fell in a middle school restroom the kids had had a liquid soap fight in) and I thought ahead for all but the practice wiping with my non dominant hand before the surgery.
When you can, get in a pool to do rehab exercises, ask your PT when you can because they got the most Range of Motion and Strength back when I did that on my time while maxing out the Worker Comp (Workers Comp is the Devil) PT time.
Good luck. I hated that needle putting the dye in. One time they did it someone on another floor burnt popcorn so I had to walk outside in a gown because of the fire alarm with the dye dissipating and they had to redye me before the MRI.
Good luck, prepare, do the PT.
Shes a weird feeling that one, (Your mri with fluid in the socket) been there, done that. Doesn't hurt (well minus the movement needed)
Good luck and hope you don't need surgery like I did.
Thanks, I appreciate it… but I can’t even lift my arm above my armpit, can’t lift anything up, but I can grab something and safely lower it (odd right?), and even though the injury occurred over a month ago I still get sharp pains in it at times. So I am nearly positive I am needing something done at the least.
Shoulders are weird in my experience, I almost had my arm ripped off in an industrial accident (only thing left holding it was skin) after relocation I kept suffering dislocations multiple times a day, ended up with a full on repair.
Reason I say this is because I know exactly what you mean about not going above the armpit but yet some things (like grabbing for you) work fine, it's quite an odd experience.
Yikes! That is scary.
Yeah, it is a trippy one for sure. Like you kind of got to relearn certain things because it just doesn’t move the same way. Definitely an odd one.
I didn’t have severe injury like others here (just torn bicep) but was unable to get surgery during the pandemic so ended up with lack of mobility (frozen shoulder). Ended up having a procedure where they knock you out and do aggressive physical therapy to break up the scar tissue! Then lots of PT after. All good now.
At work they have free preventive sessions to maintain shoulder mobility so been taking advantage of those!
I had a shoulder injury where I couldn't move my shoulder at all and had to have surgery. Honestly wasn't that bad and the surgery was just 3 small holes that have since healed nicely. Was bench pressing this week and enjoying rock climbing so I would say the surgery was successful.
Just a testimonial I guess for those surgeons
I had this exact surgery. I pray you do not need it. It was worse than having children or even having my neck broken and surgically repaired. Best of luck.
I will kind of trust you on that, but at the same time… thank you for putting it in such a lovely way (as a guy that can’t fathom the pain involved with giving birth, and honestly feels bad women go through that).
I’m laying here/ propped up right now 3 weeks out from rotator, labrum, and bicep repair. Good luck! The first two weeks of recovery were awful, but apparently there is no eject button from the recovery process. Popsicles do seem to help.
Yeah… I am not looking forward to the 3-6 month recovery process as I am a very active person, and I might be missing this next ski season right after getting new boots and skis during the after season sales. So fingers crossed it won’t be that long.
I’m 5 weeks post op for essentially this. Tore my rotator cuff, biceps long head tendon, 2 labral tears, a labral cyst removed, and a decompression of my acromium and clavicle.
First couple weeks were rough but got better. Sleeping is the hardest part overall but with a wedge pillow it’s manageable. Best of luck and fingers crossed you’re able to avoid surgery!
This scares me. The thought of being out with my family having fun and then literally just lights out. Dead. In an instant.
I developed two DVT's a few years back within 8 months of each other. I'm on blood thinners for life as a result. A few months prior to that I was experiencing heart attack like symptoms and called Ontario Telehealth. Within 10 minutes an ambulance was at my house carrying me away. Chest pains, heavy laboured breathing, excruciating pain. I almost blacked out in the ambulance, but somehow I pushed through that and was able to walk out under my own power at the hospital and was seen immediately in ER.
Heart checked out okay, no heart attack. Blood work came back OK. No indicators of anything out of the ordinary.
Few months later, swollen right leg and the first of two DVT's.
They ended up doing two separate MRI's with contrast medium and found pulmonary emboli. I haven't had any issues since so either my body has naturally broken down the clots as it should over time and the thinners are keeping things flowing, or I have one but it's to small to do anything.
Never been able to determine the cause as I no longer smoke or have family history of clots. Special blood testing can be done but I have to be off thinners for months for the test to be accurate which may or may not cause another clot somewhere which can potentially move to my lungs.
My clots also happened in Toronto, but the first ER doctor blew me off and said no one can know they have blood clots. (Narrator: he's wrong.) He said I had an adverse vaccine reaction and kicked me out, unable to walk. I'm glad you got lucky!
Yeah my first night in ER for the pain in my swollen leg due to the DVT, they shot me up with some fast acting thinner. Shot into the belly. Ultrasound on my leg the next day, then back to the ER where I handed the triage nurse the results, she took me into a "see and treat" room (non ER patients) where the Dr on rotation gave me a script for my thinners and away I went.
RX was only for 60 days so 90 days in, another swollen leg..... I have a hematologist now whom I see every year or so. Keep me on track.
It's not as bad as you think! Mainly because we knock you out first. It's pretty much a big IV that goes into the femoral artery. Through that IV we snake a guide wire against the flow of blood up to through the heart and to the lungs! Then with a little bit of suction or a grabber, we pull the clot out! Easy breezy beautiful thrombectomy.
My wife had a brain aneurysm and when they did check up on it she had to be awake as catheter went into her brain. Wild stuff, glad you’re here pimp. What were your symptoms?
Had a similar thing in early 2021 caused by COVID (because of course COVID also messes with coagulation), though my embolism was shredded by the machine used to suction it off. The suctioning almost made me faint. Extremely terrifying and mentally exhausting, and part of the reason why I had to be treated for PTSD and depression until about a year ago.
Holy fuck man… I’m glad that bad boy is out of you now! Also happy you’re still here with us and was mentally strong enough to be awake during that. Jeeeeeezus!
I’m right there with you. Had a saddle pulmonary embolism last year. When that catheter touches your heat or lungs it is terrible. As you said really uncomfortable. Best wishes for a speedy recovery.
wow. when I was almost taken out by mine they gave me clot Buster's and blood thinners to deal with it. I was dizzy for a week, but that doesn't compare to your experience.
We use this big ass catheter from the femoral vein in the groin and go in through the heart and into the lungs, then we put a big syringe at the end of the catheter and suction it out. Can’t get 100% of it but can get a lot and it gives the anticoagulation a chance to actually work. Same procedure we use for clot in the legs. Fun cases, very satisfying getting these long bloody booger looking clot out.
Source: am interventional radiologist
Yep so those are the pressures in the pulmonary artery (PAP), right atrium (RA) and right ventricle (RV). When you have significant clot in the pulmonary arteries you will see elevated pressures in the pulmonary artery, RA, and RV as the heart is trying to pump blood through that obstruction. We measure the pressure beforehand and after ( pre and post) to make sure there’s a good reduction in pressure. As we take the clot out you can literally see the patients vitals get better.
Thank you for explaining, that's helpful. I mentioned in a reply to the OP, a few months ago I had a horseshoe PE that they were able to treat with a couple massive doses per day of blood thinners for a few days while in the hospital. I had shortness of breathe for a few days that I wasn't sure what was the cause, then noticed my heart rate when sitting on the couch was around 115bpm and thought I better get checked out.
On this fathers day I'd like to take time to thank all the medical staff that helped me, each and everyone of them was terrific.. Thanks to you as well u/pendergrassswag -
I work in a cath lab; we suck these out with a catheter that goes through the femoral vein. It's then fished to your heart where you can get to the pulmonary arteries from the right ventricle. We have some special equipment that can literally suck the clots out. It's awesome!!
Dude I'm not gonna lie Im a little drunk and I hang out on various vinyl record subs and I thought this was a post from one of those subs and I thought God damn must be some crazy rare record to be wearing nitrile gloves while handling it. Looked up pulmonary embolism on Spotify expecting a deeply emotional album that would almost 'take me out' before I realized I was in fact not looking at a vinyl jacket in the pic. Glad you're ok.
How were you able to figure out you needed to go to the hospital? Having one of these has been the biggest fear I've had the past year being sedentary. I recently started going to the gym and walking/running 6 miles a day.
Stood up and became very light headed. Assumed I just stood up too fast and waited for it to pass. Went to the bathroom and while sitting I started freezing. Stood up and walked into the hallway and everything started going black. I remember hearing my wife ask "Are you ok??" And I replied "I really don't think so". Crashed on my son's bed and next thing I know my wife is freaking out because I'm freezing cold and my eyes were rolled back in my head. She was going to call 911 then but I'm a big macho man and can get myself to the doctor! (Don't be stupid like me). I lean on her to get my shoes on and everything starts going black again and I'm going down. Cue 911 call for paramedics. I was at the hospital in about 15 minutes. I asked the ER doctor "what would have happened if I didn't get here when I did?" And he calmly replied "oh you would have still came here but we couldn't have helped you and you wouldn't have known"
I was a nurse in a surgical ward. I had a youngish patient, mid 20s male. Reasonably fit and healthy to look at. He went downhill so quickly with a PE, from the time we called for assistance to him going for surgery was only an hour or so. He recovered afterwards, but I felt for him.
Glad you made it, but somewhat amusingly I had a similar experience with mine.
I’m a terrible sleeper. Never get tired, never want to go to bed, and sleep poorly when I’m there. It was 3 o’clock in the afternoon (I’d been pretty unwell most of the day) and I was just lying on the couch with my body dumping adrenaline (felt like I was sky diving), and I said to my wife “I’m fine, I’m fine. I need sleep. I just want to go to bed”
Her response…
“Get in the fucking car”
She saved my life that day.
Men huh?? Amazing we’ve lasted 60,000 odd years really 🤣
Well yes & no...
Mammal children are a lot more likely to survive and thrive if they have parents available to help, for primates like us the more parents the better.
Re: on the macho front - if you start noticing that you’re worrying more, panicking about health, inexplicably depressed or feeling like you’re alone in your view on life now - reach out to a counsellor or psychiatrist. Don’t keep it inside.
You definitely almost died, PTSD is a very real possibility and doesnt just happen to people in war zones; it creeps up quietly and changes you. It can manifest as health anxiety, general anxiety or depression. it can seem frivolous masking itself as a celebration of life via spending disorders, overconsumption of all kinds, or recklessness that feels like joy.
You’re amazing and you survived something pretty incredible. Remind yourself every day that you achieved that. And talk talk talk about your experience, even when people get bored of hearing it in 10 years. You’re awesome.
Damn glad that you made it through and had your wife help call 911. I live by myself so it's rough thinking about what would happen if I just collapsed.
Was there any pain or anything the days or weeks leading up to this ? Or the first time you knew something was wrong was being light headed. Glad you got it out .
Can’t speak for the OP but I had an embolism back in January and it started as a twinge along the bottom part of my ribs, steadily built up to where it felt like I had a knife stuck between my ribs. Drove myself to the ER at 3am after trying to tough it out thinking it was a muscle pain. 0/10 would not recommend
When I had my PE I went through some of the same things, I will add for more context, with mine I was also coughing blood. Little specks at first but after a few days it was BAD
I always tell my kids (and myself) we're always going to urgent care unless you feel like you're dying. Holy shit, you were actually dying. Welcome back.
Glad to hear you made it in time internet stranger! This exact scenario played out July 22nd 2016 for my dad. My dad had hurt his leg in a motorcycle accident and couldn’t walk for weeks. One night he felt dizzy and got up to use the bathroom. He fell flat out in the bathroom and my mom screamed for me in the middle of the night. I ran downstairs to find him unconscious and called the ambulance. It took forever for them to arrive and they needed help carrying him because he was a bigger guy. It took an eternity for help to arrive. They finally got him in the ambulance and I tailed it all the way to the hospital. He came to long enough to tell us he loved us and that he was dying. They tried clot busters and I guess we just didn’t make it in time.
He was in good spirits about his leg recovery and sitting at the dinner table July 21st and gone by 3am the 22nd. Life has never been the same and I miss him every day. He was my best friend.
Just to give you some additional symptoms that I (not OP) experienced when I had a Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) that turned into a (less-serious-than-OP's) pulmonary embolism:
- Started out as a leg cramp/pain in my leg/difficulty walking that I experienced for a few days while resting due to a nasty cold
- The above symptoms went away, but then I started getting INTENSE pain in my chest, accompanied by shortness of breath
- Went to doctor's and they thought it was just inflammation in my chest caused as a side effect of me getting sick and gave me some NSAIDs to help with the pain and inflammation and told me to go to the ER if the symptoms didn't go away in a few days
- The NSAIDs helped, but after a few days, if I let them wear off I was still in agony. Also, walking any amount of distance left me really short of breath. While sitting at my desk at work one day, I felt so short of breath that I almost called an ambulance but the episode passed after about 5 minutes.
- I decided to take myself to the ER after letting the NSAIDs wear a few days after seeing the doctor and being in such agony I couldn't even lie down to try and sleep.
- At first, the triaging ER nurses ALSO thought it was likely inflammation in my chest, but after a long wait to see the doctor and explaining to him that I was on meds that increased my risk of blood clots, that I'd been resting for about a week due to illness, and that I'd had leg cramps/pain during that time that went away and was followed by chest pain and shortness of breath, they decided to run some blood tests and a CT scan to look for blood clots, and lo and behold, I must have had a DVT that travelled to my lungs and turned into a pulmonary embolism.
- Thankfully, mine wasn't serious enough that it needed surgery like OP had. They just gave me blood thinners, and after a couple of weeks I felt completely back to normal.
You could even have one without any pain in your legs.
I had one last year. Only felt a tiny bit short of breath, but had some back pain that only was present when lying down.
Sometimes had tiny specks of blood in my mouth after coughing.
Went to the doctor, who immediately sent me to get a CT scan which confirmed his hunch.
Been on blood thinners ever since and will have to take them indefinitely.
@op: I’m glad you’re alright now, this must have been horrible
In my medium sized community hospital in the US, the interventional cardiologists have started to do this procedure and we’ve seen half a dozen already.
Woah! Excuse my ignorance, but what causes this? Specifically, what caused it in your case? Is there a cause? I am so happy you’re alive and breathing!
Doctors aren't 100% certain. Could be covid, a surgery I had 4 months prior, or a combination of both. I told the ER doctor that my vision was going black and I felt like I was passing out. My body temp was 84 degrees and my pulse ox was 74%. His reply was "oh that's because you were literally dying. Your body was powering down"
Jeez— it’s a reminder of how fragile life is. I have a friend who had to be airlifted because he slipped on a rock while just hiking.
I do the ‘crazier’ things like rock climbing or mountaineering that are higher risk, but sometimes you get moments when you remember that things can go really wrong even if you’re doing everything right in everyday life.
One of my dearest friends died after slipping on a rock while hiking along a stream. Fell on his head and died from the brain trauma. He was only 23 at the time. Hug ya loved ones!
🥲 Sorry about your friend. My Mom slipped walking on a pool deck while they were on vacation, hit her head and ended up with a severe TBI. Was definitely scary for about a year while she recovered, still isn’t the same since the accident. Life is precious.
A friend of a friend lost his 8 year old son a few days ago. I guess he came home early from school on Monday with a stomach ache and was throwing up. He was still sick when he went to bed so his parents were checking on him throughout the night. Around 4:30a they went to check on him and he wasn't breathing, he was cold and unresponsive. He was rushed to the hospital but suffered severe brain damage and he passed away. They have no idea what happened yet. From what I understand he was a totally normal and healthy kid until Monday. Absolutely gut wrenching.
Likely, yes. At least for a period of time after. After you’ve developed something like a DVT or PE, it’s developing a huge thing highlighted in your medical record.
Would you mind telling your age, weight and general health? Im seeing lots of those here lately and it makes me wonder if I should at least worry a bit
Pulmonary embolisms can result out of deep vein thrombosis of the legs. They can then just randomly lose their grip and get stuck in pulmonary arteries (alternatives if they wouldn’t get stuck there are the brain or other important arteries).
Causes can be fresh surgeries, immobility of eg your legs, genetic disorders, smoking, antibaby pill, dehydration at some point, …
The lungs are typically a terminal destination for these unless someone has a defect in their heart allowing the clot to shunt from the right side to the left side and bypass the lungs. Then it can go elsewhere. Called a paradoxical embolus.
It could be but it risks creating more of them, I have a family history of it and my siblings went years with no issues while on no blood thinners. I have been since my diagnosis of having a clot.
I remember after I got a pretty major surgery the nurses were *very* insistent that I wear compression socks for at least two weeks and sleep with my legs elevated for six. The likelihood of blood clots was very low, given my age at the time (20) but I absolutely did not wanna mess around with it
It can basically happen with no known cause but several personal factors can increase the chances. Cancer is the most common cause, varies by type of cancer, and older age, 70+.
Here is a list of risk factors for DVT/PE
https://www.cdc.gov/blood-clots/risk-factors/index.html
All of them were considered provoked. One caused by surgery and another by covid. Hematologists have run so many tests with everything coming back as normal.
Recurrent PEs often point to abnormalities in the body's coagulation system. Either too much of pro-coagulant factors (proteins), or not enough / dysfunctional anti-coagulant factors.
Some of the more common conditions would be things such as Lupus, Factor V Leiden, and Nephrotic syndrome.
I didn't really feel anything like that. It was the sensation that my brain was "turning off" and focusing on trying to breathe and remain conscious. I'm a big guy, 6’-8“ so I tend to get light headed off I stand too quickly so that's what I initially thought. I have described that my vision was like those old time tvs, where when you turned them off the screen would go black from the outside into a single point of light in the middle of the screen before going completely black.
Super textbook description of PT’s who die of PE’s. I’ve run a dozen PE calls over the years and not one described that. Multiple fatal em route. I personally had 5 massive PE’s and the only reason I went in was shortness of breath on exertion.
Im curious, too. It's also funny that he didn't mention chest pain either because I always imagined it would hurt just like a heart attack as all of that lung tissue becomes ischemic.
Funnily enough, while the onset tends to cause a chest pain, once it settles to the point where you know something serious is wrong and you seek help, the pain usually has migrated to side just above the waist, atleast, that's how it's been with me.
Only time I have ever been hospitalized is for PE. They think it was a reaction to birth control, but were never able to say exactly why. I am on a precautionary lifetime ban of hormonal medications because of it. So menopause should be super chill.
The months of multiple medical appointments each week to manage blood thinner numbers were also unbearable.
Happy they caught it and you made it through!
Just a rando fyi. There are newer blood thinners on the market with no blood testing or restricted diets required. None are generic yet but should be in the next few years and one would hope that would get rid of the old gen ones. Best of luck to you.
Not surprising - this had to be about 15 years ago when I was in my mid-20s. Happy they have better medication options now!
Even at the time, I thought it seemed like something you ought to be able to test at home and call the number into the doctor. Missed so much time at work sitting around in the doctor’s office 3-5 times per week so they could poke my finger in 2 minutes.
This shit worries me so much. My sister had a blood clot like this removed, and to get it out they have to remove bones, so it could pass through. Glad it all worked out well.
Im not a real doctor but, some examples as follows….Atrial fibrillation, covid, long periods of inactivity(long road trips, flights), recent orthopedic surgeries without post op anticoagulation, bed bound hospitalization.
You’re freaking incredible for surviving that…thing there
Blessed be you, your fam, and the doctors who worked on you.
I’m seriously glad you made it 😮💨
Glad you are OK OP. I had a DVT and bilateral PE in 2015 in my mid 20s. No risk factors at all. Just one of those freak things. They didn’t remove mine tho.
My only indicators were coughing up blood, my workouts were feeling very difficult for a few weeks and I had some slight chest pain that honestly I thought was just soreness. I had gone to my PCP for the coughing up blood and they said it was pneumonia 🙄.
9 years later and no side effects except taking blood thinners. Hope for the best for your recovery.
My cousin died of a pulmonary embolism in December 2017, at the age of 21.... Terrifying stuff! Glad they caught yours in time, internet friend!! Wishing you speedy healing 🫂❤️
You are lucky they diagnosed this and got it out. My mother had a similar "saddle" embolism a few years ago and the first ER she went to when she started having breathing problems didnt diagnose it. The second ER doc recognized it right away and sent her in an ambulance to a hospital that was equipped to handle it. We almost lost her. The doc showed us pics of the clot they removed and it was huge, like the one you had. So scary! Hope your recovery goes well...
It's an acute thing. But they would do a contract CT scan of the blood vessels in your lung.
Or if there was debate they'd do a specific blood test first and then a CT.
I got to help with a couple of these when I was rotating in interventional radiology. Very cool and satisfying procedures. Each time we got a chunk of the clot, the patient coughed almost reflexively.
First super happy your ok.. congratulations on surviving.
Second this isn't really for the op, welcome to chime in if you see it, but It's weird I keep seeing post about pulmonary embolisms. Mostly the last year. Is it because people are thinking the you know what causing them? Or random happenstance?
I had one this big or larger - they left it in for whatever reason. I was short of breath on and off for a couple of weeks and finally went to urgent care because I was so annoyed with it. Stayed in the ICU for 4 days and they let me go with blood thinners and didn’t take it out
Lost my mom 3 years ago to exactly this. She had a very minor surgery and was, from what we could see, recovering well.
I’m grateful you survived something so dangerous you just can’t see!
I’m glad you’re ok, OP. That. Is. Massive. I had a PE on Xmas day, 2018. I didn’t have any chest pains; I just kept passing out.
My daughter convinced me to go to the ER. (FYI I am a nurse) and the doctors kept arguing with me that it was because of the medication I was taking.
Meds don’t work like that. If you’re going to have a reaction, it’s not going to be 14 years later. They did a chest X-ray and discharged me. Even though I passed out in front of them several times with a SP02 of 80. This continued over 2 days.
I went to my PCP (she missed the DVT that turned my calf into triple the size but just gave me diuretics) and she sent me back to the hospital.
I reluctantly went; they did so many tests & finally did a CT w/contrast (the first test you should do) and found a blood clot and pneumonia.
I spent 8 days on a heparin drip.
My D/C paper read COPD flare up and drug addiction.
ALWAYS ADVOCATE FOR YOURSELF. 💜
Holy cow. Im sure the doctors told you, but yeah you definitely could have died from this, that's a lot of clot. People love to dramatize medical stuff on the internet, but this is a thing people really can just suddenly drop dead from.
Good grief. This is terrifying. I'm glad you made it through and I wish you all the best for a complete recovery.
Will you have to take any medications for the long term?
Oooo... Bilateral!
I had one of these about 8 years ago. Can agree, scary stuff.
Mine didn't get surgically removed tho x.x.
I'm glad you got the attention you needed, and survived the initial onset
OP, it’s great that you got it all out but this does not end here. Your dr. need to go figure it out why you have this much clot in you it could be anything from cancer to clotting disorder.
Holy crap! I had a blood clot near the edge of my lung after I broke my leg and was very low mobility for the first couple of weeks due to lack of pain management. The doctors said it travelled from my leg up through my bloodstream where it sat near my lung making breathing difficult. Seeing one this size is insane.
Surgically removed I'm assuming? How did they get in to get it?
Catheter up through my groin. I had to be awake when they took it out. I had to take deep breaths and hold them while they extracted it in 3 sections. So uncomfortable feeling that catheter hitting my heart/lungs.
The teeth clenched inhale I just had reading this makes me hope I never ever have to have something like this done… And that is while I am sitting here waiting to get the MRI where they inject fluid into the shoulder socket so they can better see the ligaments and shit because I am pretty sure I have a torn labrum and my doctor thinks it might be the trifecta of labrum, rotator cuff, and also possible an upper bicep ligament tear (having middle and index finger, and thumb nerve twinges which he says can be indicative of that tear for some reason). So I might be sliced open for full shoulder reconstruction before the end of the year…
Done this one to. Big needle! Not too painful though. Just a feeling of a “full” shoulder. The thing that caught me off guard was just how small MRI machines are. That things like a coffin! Also don’t breathe too heavy!
As one that hates needles… thanks for the reminder 🤣 I honestly am not too worried about getting in the machine, but what I am worried about is if I’ll fall asleep in it, and move ruining the image. It is a long scan doing nothing…🤣
You won’t see the needle unless you want to. They offered me music but it never started to I got to listen to the machine hum for 20 mins or so. Did 2 slightly different angles as well. Luckily for me, other than a small hole in the labrum (which may or may not be normal for me) there was nothing else “wrong”, just rest and recuperation. Good luck and pick some good tunes!
I feel like hum is an understatement. Even with headphones and music it's still so loud. 
Yeah I would not describe the noise as a hum. I've had a couple of MRIs as part of a research study and they are very loud.
I had one done once. Had in earplugs and noise cancelling headset. The best way I can describe it is that it sounded like shitty dubstep.
More like being in a rock tumbler
I liken it to bending over and putting my head into an empty metal trash can, then having two people start to beat on the outside with baseball bats.
Hahaha, I will definitely be looking the other way 😅 I am the king of falling asleep to anything my ADHD brain starts to register as white noise. That is why I am pretty sure I could pass out in the machine; I have fallen asleep while a dentist was drilling in my mouth… I am a weirdo…
I've had 3 MRIs and fell asleep during two of them. The bed was super comfortable.
They usually put a screen up so you can't see it. It's been four hours, how'd it go? I've had around a dozen of those MRIs, it isn't the best feeling.
It is scheduled for July 5th. I actually had to postpone it because I got sick this week, and wasn’t gonna bring a cold into a medical office that sees a lot of immunocompromised (cancer) patients. If I remember I’ll try to come back and let you know!
It’s really loud and sounds like it’s tearing itself apart/about to blow up. I couldn’t hear the music, and figured if the tech wasn’t worried about the noises then I shouldn’t.
If you fall asleep and move they will just wake you and restart the sequence. MRI exams are split up into sections called sequences. Each sequence is 2-8 minutes long depending on MRI machine. Just remember between the time you get the injection into the joint space and the imaging don't move your arm very much. Want to get the fluid in the joint space as much as possible.
Literally just had this done to my shoulder too. Giving blood hurts more, you barely feel the needle. They give you some local anesthesia in the joint first so honestly it's pretty painless. I hate needles too.... Makes me pass out. I just closed my eyes and was surprised when the doc said it was already over
If you have never had shoulder surgery before: Get a recliner because it is the only place you will get sleep (you can't roll over), get Velcro sneakers because you cant tie shoes, practice eating and WIPING YOUR BUTT with the other hand because it is not easy, start taking something like Metamucil or Mirilax a few days before surgery because the pain meds and anesthesia will bind you up bad. I had what sounds like the same injury you had (Fell in a middle school restroom the kids had had a liquid soap fight in) and I thought ahead for all but the practice wiping with my non dominant hand before the surgery. When you can, get in a pool to do rehab exercises, ask your PT when you can because they got the most Range of Motion and Strength back when I did that on my time while maxing out the Worker Comp (Workers Comp is the Devil) PT time. Good luck. I hated that needle putting the dye in. One time they did it someone on another floor burnt popcorn so I had to walk outside in a gown because of the fire alarm with the dye dissipating and they had to redye me before the MRI. Good luck, prepare, do the PT.
Shes a weird feeling that one, (Your mri with fluid in the socket) been there, done that. Doesn't hurt (well minus the movement needed) Good luck and hope you don't need surgery like I did.
Thanks, I appreciate it… but I can’t even lift my arm above my armpit, can’t lift anything up, but I can grab something and safely lower it (odd right?), and even though the injury occurred over a month ago I still get sharp pains in it at times. So I am nearly positive I am needing something done at the least.
Shoulders are weird in my experience, I almost had my arm ripped off in an industrial accident (only thing left holding it was skin) after relocation I kept suffering dislocations multiple times a day, ended up with a full on repair. Reason I say this is because I know exactly what you mean about not going above the armpit but yet some things (like grabbing for you) work fine, it's quite an odd experience.
Yikes! That is scary. Yeah, it is a trippy one for sure. Like you kind of got to relearn certain things because it just doesn’t move the same way. Definitely an odd one.
I didn’t have severe injury like others here (just torn bicep) but was unable to get surgery during the pandemic so ended up with lack of mobility (frozen shoulder). Ended up having a procedure where they knock you out and do aggressive physical therapy to break up the scar tissue! Then lots of PT after. All good now. At work they have free preventive sessions to maintain shoulder mobility so been taking advantage of those!
I had a shoulder injury where I couldn't move my shoulder at all and had to have surgery. Honestly wasn't that bad and the surgery was just 3 small holes that have since healed nicely. Was bench pressing this week and enjoying rock climbing so I would say the surgery was successful. Just a testimonial I guess for those surgeons
Better than prying open your sawed in half sternum I figure.
I had this exact surgery. I pray you do not need it. It was worse than having children or even having my neck broken and surgically repaired. Best of luck.
I will kind of trust you on that, but at the same time… thank you for putting it in such a lovely way (as a guy that can’t fathom the pain involved with giving birth, and honestly feels bad women go through that).
The worst pain imaginable. If you can avoid it, do.
I’m laying here/ propped up right now 3 weeks out from rotator, labrum, and bicep repair. Good luck! The first two weeks of recovery were awful, but apparently there is no eject button from the recovery process. Popsicles do seem to help.
Yeah… I am not looking forward to the 3-6 month recovery process as I am a very active person, and I might be missing this next ski season right after getting new boots and skis during the after season sales. So fingers crossed it won’t be that long.
I’m 5 weeks post op for essentially this. Tore my rotator cuff, biceps long head tendon, 2 labral tears, a labral cyst removed, and a decompression of my acromium and clavicle. First couple weeks were rough but got better. Sleeping is the hardest part overall but with a wedge pillow it’s manageable. Best of luck and fingers crossed you’re able to avoid surgery!
had that done myself. i never saw the needle but i felt it needle big
This scares me. The thought of being out with my family having fun and then literally just lights out. Dead. In an instant. I developed two DVT's a few years back within 8 months of each other. I'm on blood thinners for life as a result. A few months prior to that I was experiencing heart attack like symptoms and called Ontario Telehealth. Within 10 minutes an ambulance was at my house carrying me away. Chest pains, heavy laboured breathing, excruciating pain. I almost blacked out in the ambulance, but somehow I pushed through that and was able to walk out under my own power at the hospital and was seen immediately in ER. Heart checked out okay, no heart attack. Blood work came back OK. No indicators of anything out of the ordinary. Few months later, swollen right leg and the first of two DVT's. They ended up doing two separate MRI's with contrast medium and found pulmonary emboli. I haven't had any issues since so either my body has naturally broken down the clots as it should over time and the thinners are keeping things flowing, or I have one but it's to small to do anything. Never been able to determine the cause as I no longer smoke or have family history of clots. Special blood testing can be done but I have to be off thinners for months for the test to be accurate which may or may not cause another clot somewhere which can potentially move to my lungs.
My clots also happened in Toronto, but the first ER doctor blew me off and said no one can know they have blood clots. (Narrator: he's wrong.) He said I had an adverse vaccine reaction and kicked me out, unable to walk. I'm glad you got lucky!
Yeah my first night in ER for the pain in my swollen leg due to the DVT, they shot me up with some fast acting thinner. Shot into the belly. Ultrasound on my leg the next day, then back to the ER where I handed the triage nurse the results, she took me into a "see and treat" room (non ER patients) where the Dr on rotation gave me a script for my thinners and away I went. RX was only for 60 days so 90 days in, another swollen leg..... I have a hematologist now whom I see every year or so. Keep me on track.
I don't think I've read something which has made me feel more physically uncomfortable. Glad you're still with us OP.
agreed!
It's not as bad as you think! Mainly because we knock you out first. It's pretty much a big IV that goes into the femoral artery. Through that IV we snake a guide wire against the flow of blood up to through the heart and to the lungs! Then with a little bit of suction or a grabber, we pull the clot out! Easy breezy beautiful thrombectomy.
What a terrible day to be able to read!
My wife had a brain aneurysm and when they did check up on it she had to be awake as catheter went into her brain. Wild stuff, glad you’re here pimp. What were your symptoms?
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
I know two people who died of a brain aneurysm and it's now something I'm terrified of. What signs did she have that made her see a doctor?
You’re a badass.
Nope. Nope. Nuh uh. Just pull the plug. No sir. You're a stronger person than I.
Everything you wrote is insane. Modern medicine is amazing, and I'm so happy that you're okay.
Had a similar thing in early 2021 caused by COVID (because of course COVID also messes with coagulation), though my embolism was shredded by the machine used to suction it off. The suctioning almost made me faint. Extremely terrifying and mentally exhausting, and part of the reason why I had to be treated for PTSD and depression until about a year ago.
I really hate that last sentence
What a terrible day to be able to read
Holy fuck man… I’m glad that bad boy is out of you now! Also happy you’re still here with us and was mentally strong enough to be awake during that. Jeeeeeezus!
Did you get to see the catheter? The thing is massive. Like a garden hose! Glad you made it.
It’s actually pretty amazing how large clots can be sucked out through relatively small diameter catheters.
I’m right there with you. Had a saddle pulmonary embolism last year. When that catheter touches your heat or lungs it is terrible. As you said really uncomfortable. Best wishes for a speedy recovery.
Hey OP I’m glad you are OK. Hope you get better and better in the coming weeks, love from an internet stranger. ❤️
Just reading this made me squirm uncontrollably. Omg that sounds horrible. You're a trooper.
Omg - I can’t imagine being awake during something like that! I’d be freaking out!
wow. when I was almost taken out by mine they gave me clot Buster's and blood thinners to deal with it. I was dizzy for a week, but that doesn't compare to your experience.
Ain't modern medicine amazing, man!
We use this big ass catheter from the femoral vein in the groin and go in through the heart and into the lungs, then we put a big syringe at the end of the catheter and suction it out. Can’t get 100% of it but can get a lot and it gives the anticoagulation a chance to actually work. Same procedure we use for clot in the legs. Fun cases, very satisfying getting these long bloody booger looking clot out. Source: am interventional radiologist
Are you able to explain what the writing on the chart is? Thanks
Yep so those are the pressures in the pulmonary artery (PAP), right atrium (RA) and right ventricle (RV). When you have significant clot in the pulmonary arteries you will see elevated pressures in the pulmonary artery, RA, and RV as the heart is trying to pump blood through that obstruction. We measure the pressure beforehand and after ( pre and post) to make sure there’s a good reduction in pressure. As we take the clot out you can literally see the patients vitals get better.
Thank you for explaining, that's helpful. I mentioned in a reply to the OP, a few months ago I had a horseshoe PE that they were able to treat with a couple massive doses per day of blood thinners for a few days while in the hospital. I had shortness of breathe for a few days that I wasn't sure what was the cause, then noticed my heart rate when sitting on the couch was around 115bpm and thought I better get checked out. On this fathers day I'd like to take time to thank all the medical staff that helped me, each and everyone of them was terrific.. Thanks to you as well u/pendergrassswag -
I’m glad you’re ok! Pulmonary emboli are no joke, especially big ones like you had. Thank you!
I work in a cath lab; we suck these out with a catheter that goes through the femoral vein. It's then fished to your heart where you can get to the pulmonary arteries from the right ventricle. We have some special equipment that can literally suck the clots out. It's awesome!!
Inari thrombectomy, game changing procedure. In the process of learning to do it.
Dude I'm not gonna lie Im a little drunk and I hang out on various vinyl record subs and I thought this was a post from one of those subs and I thought God damn must be some crazy rare record to be wearing nitrile gloves while handling it. Looked up pulmonary embolism on Spotify expecting a deeply emotional album that would almost 'take me out' before I realized I was in fact not looking at a vinyl jacket in the pic. Glad you're ok.
This is the best reply on this post.
That fucking username wtf
what? You think you can queef any faster???
No but I bet I can make yo mama go faster
😂😂😂
Huh, I guess it does kind of look like a face with bleeding eyes if you squint. I could see that being an album cover
Reminds me of the album 'Sing the Word Hope in Four Part Harmony' by maybeshewill.
😁
How were you able to figure out you needed to go to the hospital? Having one of these has been the biggest fear I've had the past year being sedentary. I recently started going to the gym and walking/running 6 miles a day.
Stood up and became very light headed. Assumed I just stood up too fast and waited for it to pass. Went to the bathroom and while sitting I started freezing. Stood up and walked into the hallway and everything started going black. I remember hearing my wife ask "Are you ok??" And I replied "I really don't think so". Crashed on my son's bed and next thing I know my wife is freaking out because I'm freezing cold and my eyes were rolled back in my head. She was going to call 911 then but I'm a big macho man and can get myself to the doctor! (Don't be stupid like me). I lean on her to get my shoes on and everything starts going black again and I'm going down. Cue 911 call for paramedics. I was at the hospital in about 15 minutes. I asked the ER doctor "what would have happened if I didn't get here when I did?" And he calmly replied "oh you would have still came here but we couldn't have helped you and you wouldn't have known"
"oh you would have still came here but we couldn't have helped you and you wouldn't have known" Um, holy fuck.
To be fair, if you're gonna go out, that sounds like the better of the options.
Lots of words to say "you b ded"
Sometimes you gotta be brutally honest to people to take things seriously and break the mindset of "meh, it'll be fine".
I was a nurse in a surgical ward. I had a youngish patient, mid 20s male. Reasonably fit and healthy to look at. He went downhill so quickly with a PE, from the time we called for assistance to him going for surgery was only an hour or so. He recovered afterwards, but I felt for him.
Glad you made it, but somewhat amusingly I had a similar experience with mine. I’m a terrible sleeper. Never get tired, never want to go to bed, and sleep poorly when I’m there. It was 3 o’clock in the afternoon (I’d been pretty unwell most of the day) and I was just lying on the couch with my body dumping adrenaline (felt like I was sky diving), and I said to my wife “I’m fine, I’m fine. I need sleep. I just want to go to bed” Her response… “Get in the fucking car” She saved my life that day. Men huh?? Amazing we’ve lasted 60,000 odd years really 🤣
Odds are you make kids before you get an embolism. That’s the point of horny teen years. If you die after the kids, meh. Evolution is ok with that.
Well yes & no... Mammal children are a lot more likely to survive and thrive if they have parents available to help, for primates like us the more parents the better.
Re: on the macho front - if you start noticing that you’re worrying more, panicking about health, inexplicably depressed or feeling like you’re alone in your view on life now - reach out to a counsellor or psychiatrist. Don’t keep it inside. You definitely almost died, PTSD is a very real possibility and doesnt just happen to people in war zones; it creeps up quietly and changes you. It can manifest as health anxiety, general anxiety or depression. it can seem frivolous masking itself as a celebration of life via spending disorders, overconsumption of all kinds, or recklessness that feels like joy. You’re amazing and you survived something pretty incredible. Remind yourself every day that you achieved that. And talk talk talk about your experience, even when people get bored of hearing it in 10 years. You’re awesome.
Damn glad that you made it through and had your wife help call 911. I live by myself so it's rough thinking about what would happen if I just collapsed.
Yeah. I live alone. I’d just die
This is the only kind of thing that makes me wish I was in a relationship right now
Was there any pain or anything the days or weeks leading up to this ? Or the first time you knew something was wrong was being light headed. Glad you got it out .
Can’t speak for the OP but I had an embolism back in January and it started as a twinge along the bottom part of my ribs, steadily built up to where it felt like I had a knife stuck between my ribs. Drove myself to the ER at 3am after trying to tough it out thinking it was a muscle pain. 0/10 would not recommend
When I had my PE I went through some of the same things, I will add for more context, with mine I was also coughing blood. Little specks at first but after a few days it was BAD
Did you have shortness of breath?
Yeah could only get a mouthful in at a time. Spent five hours in the ER before I saw anyone. Absolute agony
I lost a good friend in college to a pulmonary embolism. I'm glad you're here OP.
I always tell my kids (and myself) we're always going to urgent care unless you feel like you're dying. Holy shit, you were actually dying. Welcome back.
Glad to hear you made it in time internet stranger! This exact scenario played out July 22nd 2016 for my dad. My dad had hurt his leg in a motorcycle accident and couldn’t walk for weeks. One night he felt dizzy and got up to use the bathroom. He fell flat out in the bathroom and my mom screamed for me in the middle of the night. I ran downstairs to find him unconscious and called the ambulance. It took forever for them to arrive and they needed help carrying him because he was a bigger guy. It took an eternity for help to arrive. They finally got him in the ambulance and I tailed it all the way to the hospital. He came to long enough to tell us he loved us and that he was dying. They tried clot busters and I guess we just didn’t make it in time. He was in good spirits about his leg recovery and sitting at the dinner table July 21st and gone by 3am the 22nd. Life has never been the same and I miss him every day. He was my best friend.
Just to give you some additional symptoms that I (not OP) experienced when I had a Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) that turned into a (less-serious-than-OP's) pulmonary embolism: - Started out as a leg cramp/pain in my leg/difficulty walking that I experienced for a few days while resting due to a nasty cold - The above symptoms went away, but then I started getting INTENSE pain in my chest, accompanied by shortness of breath - Went to doctor's and they thought it was just inflammation in my chest caused as a side effect of me getting sick and gave me some NSAIDs to help with the pain and inflammation and told me to go to the ER if the symptoms didn't go away in a few days - The NSAIDs helped, but after a few days, if I let them wear off I was still in agony. Also, walking any amount of distance left me really short of breath. While sitting at my desk at work one day, I felt so short of breath that I almost called an ambulance but the episode passed after about 5 minutes. - I decided to take myself to the ER after letting the NSAIDs wear a few days after seeing the doctor and being in such agony I couldn't even lie down to try and sleep. - At first, the triaging ER nurses ALSO thought it was likely inflammation in my chest, but after a long wait to see the doctor and explaining to him that I was on meds that increased my risk of blood clots, that I'd been resting for about a week due to illness, and that I'd had leg cramps/pain during that time that went away and was followed by chest pain and shortness of breath, they decided to run some blood tests and a CT scan to look for blood clots, and lo and behold, I must have had a DVT that travelled to my lungs and turned into a pulmonary embolism. - Thankfully, mine wasn't serious enough that it needed surgery like OP had. They just gave me blood thinners, and after a couple of weeks I felt completely back to normal.
You could even have one without any pain in your legs. I had one last year. Only felt a tiny bit short of breath, but had some back pain that only was present when lying down. Sometimes had tiny specks of blood in my mouth after coughing. Went to the doctor, who immediately sent me to get a CT scan which confirmed his hunch. Been on blood thinners ever since and will have to take them indefinitely. @op: I’m glad you’re alright now, this must have been horrible
I'm a doctor in India and I've never seen such massive PE in my entire life.
In my medium sized community hospital in the US, the interventional cardiologists have started to do this procedure and we’ve seen half a dozen already.
Google image “saddle pe thrombectomy”. There’s loads of interesting photos.
Woah! Excuse my ignorance, but what causes this? Specifically, what caused it in your case? Is there a cause? I am so happy you’re alive and breathing!
Doctors aren't 100% certain. Could be covid, a surgery I had 4 months prior, or a combination of both. I told the ER doctor that my vision was going black and I felt like I was passing out. My body temp was 84 degrees and my pulse ox was 74%. His reply was "oh that's because you were literally dying. Your body was powering down"
Jeez— it’s a reminder of how fragile life is. I have a friend who had to be airlifted because he slipped on a rock while just hiking. I do the ‘crazier’ things like rock climbing or mountaineering that are higher risk, but sometimes you get moments when you remember that things can go really wrong even if you’re doing everything right in everyday life.
One of my dearest friends died after slipping on a rock while hiking along a stream. Fell on his head and died from the brain trauma. He was only 23 at the time. Hug ya loved ones!
I just had a close friend pass from slipping on a hike. Completely unexpected, she hiked frequently too. She was only 26. Indeed hug your loved ones!!
🥲 Sorry about your friend. My Mom slipped walking on a pool deck while they were on vacation, hit her head and ended up with a severe TBI. Was definitely scary for about a year while she recovered, still isn’t the same since the accident. Life is precious.
A friend of a friend lost his 8 year old son a few days ago. I guess he came home early from school on Monday with a stomach ache and was throwing up. He was still sick when he went to bed so his parents were checking on him throughout the night. Around 4:30a they went to check on him and he wasn't breathing, he was cold and unresponsive. He was rushed to the hospital but suffered severe brain damage and he passed away. They have no idea what happened yet. From what I understand he was a totally normal and healthy kid until Monday. Absolutely gut wrenching.
84 degrees?! Holy shit. I’m glad you’re here to tell the tale.
Did you have to take anti coagulants after they removed it?
Likely, yes. At least for a period of time after. After you’ve developed something like a DVT or PE, it’s developing a huge thing highlighted in your medical record.
[удалено]
So it was probably the Covid
It is a vascular disease after all...
Would you mind telling your age, weight and general health? Im seeing lots of those here lately and it makes me wonder if I should at least worry a bit
Holy shit 74%?!?!!!! Normal is 95-100 and I was taught anything less than 92 is get worried and less than 90 is get to the ER time. Wow.
Yeah I was 90-91 just from flu/small bit of pneumonia and I got an ER room faster than half the other waiting room folks.
Pulmonary embolisms can result out of deep vein thrombosis of the legs. They can then just randomly lose their grip and get stuck in pulmonary arteries (alternatives if they wouldn’t get stuck there are the brain or other important arteries). Causes can be fresh surgeries, immobility of eg your legs, genetic disorders, smoking, antibaby pill, dehydration at some point, …
antibaby pill German detected.
https://m.youtube.com/shorts/yyvnfHJ26aA Relevant
Shit
The lungs are typically a terminal destination for these unless someone has a defect in their heart allowing the clot to shunt from the right side to the left side and bypass the lungs. Then it can go elsewhere. Called a paradoxical embolus.
I have protein s deficiency and have a huge clot from my leg to my pelvis, essentially just waiting for the day it flies up to the ol gas bags
can that be removed preemptively? if that clot ever shoots up you won’t have a lot of time for a emergency removal
It could be but it risks creating more of them, I have a family history of it and my siblings went years with no issues while on no blood thinners. I have been since my diagnosis of having a clot.
I remember after I got a pretty major surgery the nurses were *very* insistent that I wear compression socks for at least two weeks and sleep with my legs elevated for six. The likelihood of blood clots was very low, given my age at the time (20) but I absolutely did not wanna mess around with it
It can basically happen with no known cause but several personal factors can increase the chances. Cancer is the most common cause, varies by type of cancer, and older age, 70+. Here is a list of risk factors for DVT/PE https://www.cdc.gov/blood-clots/risk-factors/index.html
Glad you survived. I've had three PEs try to take me out and a cousin who passed from one. Not something I would recommend.
Do you know why you keep getting them?
All of them were considered provoked. One caused by surgery and another by covid. Hematologists have run so many tests with everything coming back as normal.
Good luck man. Are you on blood thinners forever?
Recurrent PEs often point to abnormalities in the body's coagulation system. Either too much of pro-coagulant factors (proteins), or not enough / dysfunctional anti-coagulant factors. Some of the more common conditions would be things such as Lupus, Factor V Leiden, and Nephrotic syndrome.
Had a bilateral pulmonary embolism a few months ago and a clot in my heart to boot. I know i feel lucky to be alive.. I bet you are too
I thought the dots were more photos, so I swiped 😭
I told you it wasn't Lupus, Foreman!
It's never Lupus.
I have always wanted to ask this. In our textbook, patients experiencing a PE often noted a feeling of impending doom. Did you experience this?
I didn't really feel anything like that. It was the sensation that my brain was "turning off" and focusing on trying to breathe and remain conscious. I'm a big guy, 6’-8“ so I tend to get light headed off I stand too quickly so that's what I initially thought. I have described that my vision was like those old time tvs, where when you turned them off the screen would go black from the outside into a single point of light in the middle of the screen before going completely black.
Super textbook description of PT’s who die of PE’s. I’ve run a dozen PE calls over the years and not one described that. Multiple fatal em route. I personally had 5 massive PE’s and the only reason I went in was shortness of breath on exertion.
Im curious, too. It's also funny that he didn't mention chest pain either because I always imagined it would hurt just like a heart attack as all of that lung tissue becomes ischemic.
Funnily enough, while the onset tends to cause a chest pain, once it settles to the point where you know something serious is wrong and you seek help, the pain usually has migrated to side just above the waist, atleast, that's how it's been with me.
Not sure if that's relieving or terrifying but thanks for that info.
There was no chest pain or anything like that. I felt perfectly fine until I stood up too walk.
Only time I have ever been hospitalized is for PE. They think it was a reaction to birth control, but were never able to say exactly why. I am on a precautionary lifetime ban of hormonal medications because of it. So menopause should be super chill. The months of multiple medical appointments each week to manage blood thinner numbers were also unbearable. Happy they caught it and you made it through!
Just a rando fyi. There are newer blood thinners on the market with no blood testing or restricted diets required. None are generic yet but should be in the next few years and one would hope that would get rid of the old gen ones. Best of luck to you.
Not surprising - this had to be about 15 years ago when I was in my mid-20s. Happy they have better medication options now! Even at the time, I thought it seemed like something you ought to be able to test at home and call the number into the doctor. Missed so much time at work sitting around in the doctor’s office 3-5 times per week so they could poke my finger in 2 minutes.
This shit worries me so much. My sister had a blood clot like this removed, and to get it out they have to remove bones, so it could pass through. Glad it all worked out well.
Ooh a saddle PE. You’re very lucky! Those are super fatal. Glad you made it.
Yuupppp. Last patient I took care of with one of these actually coded. Not a good time.
What causes such condition?
This is one of those fun “everyone can get it for various reasons” situations…
Im not a real doctor but, some examples as follows….Atrial fibrillation, covid, long periods of inactivity(long road trips, flights), recent orthopedic surgeries without post op anticoagulation, bed bound hospitalization.
Close. Atrial fibrillation is not a cause of PE. Add cancer to your list.
You’re freaking incredible for surviving that…thing there Blessed be you, your fam, and the doctors who worked on you. I’m seriously glad you made it 😮💨
Wow
Glad you are OK OP. I had a DVT and bilateral PE in 2015 in my mid 20s. No risk factors at all. Just one of those freak things. They didn’t remove mine tho. My only indicators were coughing up blood, my workouts were feeling very difficult for a few weeks and I had some slight chest pain that honestly I thought was just soreness. I had gone to my PCP for the coughing up blood and they said it was pneumonia 🙄. 9 years later and no side effects except taking blood thinners. Hope for the best for your recovery.
My cousin died of a pulmonary embolism in December 2017, at the age of 21.... Terrifying stuff! Glad they caught yours in time, internet friend!! Wishing you speedy healing 🫂❤️
You are lucky they diagnosed this and got it out. My mother had a similar "saddle" embolism a few years ago and the first ER she went to when she started having breathing problems didnt diagnose it. The second ER doc recognized it right away and sent her in an ambulance to a hospital that was equipped to handle it. We almost lost her. The doc showed us pics of the clot they removed and it was huge, like the one you had. So scary! Hope your recovery goes well...
I could swear I'm seeing clot pictures posted here every month now. Yuck.
Bilateral PE survivor here as well. 10 years ago. Been on Xarelto ever since.
What were symptoms leading up to the main event? Weeks before or months before? Had you been to the pulmonologist or cardiologist for symptoms?
No symptoms. Felt completely normal up until the time it happened.
So glad that you're still with us, and wishing you a quick recovery. Thank goodness for modern medicine. Really.
No LIe how do you get tested for this?
It's an acute thing. But they would do a contract CT scan of the blood vessels in your lung. Or if there was debate they'd do a specific blood test first and then a CT.
Oh you'll know when it hits you it's a medical emergency and lethal if no intervention is done.
I had one of these bad boys as well and they shot me up with contrast fluid and chucked me in an MRI.
I got to help with a couple of these when I was rotating in interventional radiology. Very cool and satisfying procedures. Each time we got a chunk of the clot, the patient coughed almost reflexively.
First super happy your ok.. congratulations on surviving. Second this isn't really for the op, welcome to chime in if you see it, but It's weird I keep seeing post about pulmonary embolisms. Mostly the last year. Is it because people are thinking the you know what causing them? Or random happenstance?
How does this happen!! So scary 😨 glad you're ok
You’re incredibly lucky to be alive….
That is a terrifying photo. Glad you made it through to the other side and please take care of yourself
Probably?!!
My 30y/o cousin died from one of those. I'm happy that you got it out in time OP!
My 30 y/o sister died from the same thing. Sorry for your loss 😞
I had one this big or larger - they left it in for whatever reason. I was short of breath on and off for a couple of weeks and finally went to urgent care because I was so annoyed with it. Stayed in the ICU for 4 days and they let me go with blood thinners and didn’t take it out
Lost my mom 3 years ago to exactly this. She had a very minor surgery and was, from what we could see, recovering well. I’m grateful you survived something so dangerous you just can’t see!
I’m glad you’re ok, OP. That. Is. Massive. I had a PE on Xmas day, 2018. I didn’t have any chest pains; I just kept passing out. My daughter convinced me to go to the ER. (FYI I am a nurse) and the doctors kept arguing with me that it was because of the medication I was taking. Meds don’t work like that. If you’re going to have a reaction, it’s not going to be 14 years later. They did a chest X-ray and discharged me. Even though I passed out in front of them several times with a SP02 of 80. This continued over 2 days. I went to my PCP (she missed the DVT that turned my calf into triple the size but just gave me diuretics) and she sent me back to the hospital. I reluctantly went; they did so many tests & finally did a CT w/contrast (the first test you should do) and found a blood clot and pneumonia. I spent 8 days on a heparin drip. My D/C paper read COPD flare up and drug addiction. ALWAYS ADVOCATE FOR YOURSELF. 💜
Holy cow. Im sure the doctors told you, but yeah you definitely could have died from this, that's a lot of clot. People love to dramatize medical stuff on the internet, but this is a thing people really can just suddenly drop dead from.
Oh they didn’t check your RV after. You’re done for! But cool and good wishes!
Good grief. This is terrifying. I'm glad you made it through and I wish you all the best for a complete recovery. Will you have to take any medications for the long term?
Was this a teaching hospital? I'm fascinated by this.
Frame it and hang it up as a trophy?
It's weird knowing that nobody is going to put this much effort into saving my life if this happens to me.
My brain thought this was a weird partially-finished embroidery project at first.
Is there a way to get checked for this without waiting for an ER level event? I’m shook.
Oooo... Bilateral! I had one of these about 8 years ago. Can agree, scary stuff. Mine didn't get surgically removed tho x.x. I'm glad you got the attention you needed, and survived the initial onset
How did it affect you? What differently do you feel now when it’s gone?
Looks like they used a penumbra device on you. Glad you’re okay, my friend.
Amazing that it was found and treated and you survived! Was it in the USA? I'm wondering about health insurance coverage and if it was adequate.
Glad you made it! PE is a scary thing to endure.
OP, it’s great that you got it all out but this does not end here. Your dr. need to go figure it out why you have this much clot in you it could be anything from cancer to clotting disorder.
What were your symptoms that you had that make you call a Dr in the first place ?
"Probably"?!? What kind of nightmare hardcore existence have you lived where there is competition for this?
HOLY fucking SHIT I did NOT know they got that BIG! That is insane. Glad you’re still here with us, wow.
Holy cow! Glad you made it