Jim Alfredson Posted November 13, 2004 Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 So Monday morning (November 8th) my wife woke up at 6:00am, her normal time, with a bloodshot left eye. She didn't really think anything of it and proceeded to do her morning routine and go to work. That day she had an appointment with a new doctor, a consultation to determine if he will become our family doctor. The appointment was at 1:00pm. Starting around 11:00am that morning, my wife started having dizzy spells while sitting at her desk at work. Then a numbness/tingle sensation started in the left side of her face as well as a dull ache behind her left ear. By noon it had traveled into her left neck and down her left shoulder and into her left arm. She drove herself to the doctor's office (not a good thing) and after doing a small checkup on her and listening to her symptoms, he told her she must go to the emergency room but obviously she couldn't drive. So she calls me at around 2pm and I gather up Zora and head to the office to pick her up (getting a cop after me in the process... no ticket... he was pissed when I told him I didn't have time for him!) We go to the emergency room, wait for three hours to get admitted, and finally get to see some doctors. By this time the numbness is just steady but not spreading anywhere else. Long story short, they kept her in the hospital until Wednesday (Nov. 10th) and ran a series of tests including a CT scan, EKG, an MRI, and an ultra-sound of her neck. They really haven't told us much except that she didn't have a stroke (I guess post-pardum strokes are more common than people know) and that they were not ruling out MS (multiple-sclerosis). She has another appointment this coming Wednesday to get an Evoke Vision Response test. She was also supposed to get an appointment with the Michigan State University neurological department. We've called them several times to set something up and no one has called us back. Yesterday we went to a chiropractor, just in case it might be a pinched nerve. She did a simple test where she asked Alison to follow her fingers with her whole head (instead of just her eyes, like the doctors in the hospital did what seemed like a thousand times). She started by moving her fingers so that Alison rotated her head to the left. Then she lifted them in the air so that Alison was looking left and back, up towards the ceiling, over her shoulder. Then she asked her to count backwards from 20. Alison missed the number 11 and when she turned her head back, had a massive dizzy spell that lasted a few minutes. When the chiropractor did on the right side, Alison didn't miss any numbers and had no dizziness. That's as far as the chiropractor went and told us to get some more tests done. It seems obvious to me from that test that something is wrong with her left caritod artery, the artery that runs up to the brain in the neck. That's what the ultrasound on her neck was for, but I have no idea if they just checked the external artery (which you can see and feel through the skin) or the internal. The dizziness seems to be caused by not getting enough blood to the brain. I suppose it could still be a pinched nerve or an out-of-line vertebrae in the lower neck that is causing the muscles around to swell and affect the caritod artery. But we just don't know. I feel like the doctors are looking for one thing (MS) and are stuck on that and not really looking for anything else. It could be that, but the neck test seems pretty substantial. Why didn't the doctors do a test like that? I guess I'm just looking for advice, or maybe someone here has had a similair experience. The symptoms are not worsening, but just staying the same. Although the dull pain behind her eye is back today and there is numbness again in her left cheek and under her tongue, which had not been there since Monday. Ideas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted November 13, 2004 Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 None, but my god, my thoughts and hopes are with you all. Do you have insurance that will allow for seeing different doctors to get second opinions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
connoisseur series500 Posted November 13, 2004 Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 (edited) Sounds worrisome. Hope everything proves okay. Maybe Dr. J. or JHoots can sugguest something... Edited November 13, 2004 by connoisseur series500 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wesbed Posted November 13, 2004 Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 (edited) None, but my god, my thoughts and hopes are with you all. JSngry has said all I can think of to say. Where is DrJ? Edited November 13, 2004 by wesbed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
connoisseur series500 Posted November 13, 2004 Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 Do you have insurance that will allow for seeing different doctors to get second opinions? A very cogent question. Jim is self-employed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Alfredson Posted November 13, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 None, but my god, my thoughts and hopes are with you all. Do you have insurance that will allow for seeing different doctors to get second opinions? I have no idea what our insurance covers. But I do want to get some second and third opinions. That's kind of what the chiropractic visit was for. She was very nice and explained everything very well whereas the doctors at the hospital don't tell you anything. I should say that Alison's cousin works as a radiologist technician at the same hospital we were at and she looked at Alison's chart (with my wife's permission) and could only decipher that the doctors had written something about an abnormality on the lower left part of her brain. What this means, nobody knows. Like I said, they don't tell us anything. To say I'm wary of doctors is an understatement. My mom was diagnosed with a brain tumor and died a month later, after the doctors reassured us that they could treat it with surgery and chemo. I'm pissed off that no one has called back from the neurological department. If this is a tumor or something, isnt' time of the essence? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
connoisseur series500 Posted November 13, 2004 Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 Speed and medical care just don't belong in the same universe unfortunately. Seems like most of the medical profession are overworked and overstressed. Wish I had something valuable to add, but I'm a medical dunce. I only know about kidney stones... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Alfredson Posted November 13, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 I forgot to add that on Monday as the symptoms came on in the morning, she had a metallic taste on the left side of her mouth. It was gone by Tuesday and has not returned. She also just told me that the doctors asked her about arm spasms, which she was not experiencing while in the hospital. But she said that yesterday and today she has had some where she'd be holding something and all of a sudden it would just fly out of her hand. I'm getting really worried now and I don't know why we have nothing scheduled until Wednesday. I'm about to drive her back to the emergency room or something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Posted November 13, 2004 Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 None, but my god, my thoughts and hopes are with you all. JSngry has said all I can think of to say. Same here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leeway Posted November 13, 2004 Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 They key thing in dealing with doctors is "communication." Unfortunately, sometimes you have to MAKE your doctor communicate with you. Don't know why that' so, but it often seems like the rule, rather than the exception. Without being confrontational, have your doctors explain carefully to you, so that you really understand them, what they are diagnosing. What you told us, you need to tell your doctor(s). I know everyone on this Board is wishing your wife a safe and healthy outcome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost of miles Posted November 13, 2004 Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 None, but my god, my thoughts and hopes are with you all. JSngry has said all I can think of to say. Same here. Count me in as well, Jim, and everybody else here, I'm sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Alfredson Posted November 13, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 Thanks, Leeway. The position doctors sometimes put you in is awkward, am I'm sure everyone knows. They are the doctor, you are the patient and they know what's best and you feel strange questioning them. Anyway, the problem now is that we are in limbo. We don't have a doctor. The doctor that was seeing her at the hospital told her that he specializes in strokes and couldn't do anything more for her and wanted her to see the doctors at the MSU neurology department and they aren't calling us back. So what the hell? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rooster_Ties Posted November 13, 2004 Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 Our thoughts and/or prayers are with you, big-time, Jim. Keep demanding answers, and ask lots of questions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leeway Posted November 13, 2004 Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 How does your wife feel? Does she feel she needs immediate attention? If you or her feel she needs emergency treatment, then take her back to the emergency room. Don't delay. Next step: Find an MD you are comfortable with, someone who can organize and assess the treatment(s), and give you feedback that you have confidence in. You need a good MD for your family, period. If the situation doesn't require immediate hospital treatment, then see what the neurologists say when your appointment comes due. You might be able to get staff to move the appointment up to Monday; tell them how serious it looks to you. Doctors are rather bureaucratic; it's their way of protecting themselves emotionally and legally. I suspect they want to be sure of their diagnosis before making and conclusive statements. But, again, do have them take an extra minute to explain what is going on. Best wishes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe G Posted November 13, 2004 Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 Leeway's post makes the points I was going to make. If I can help in any way, don't hesitate to ask, bro. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Gould Posted November 13, 2004 Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 Jim, Are there any other neurological options other than the MSU department? If they're not responding, I think it behooves you to find someone in that area of expertise. Or else, go there first thing monday morning and speak to them face to face, with Allison. Failure to even call back is ridiculous. The only other thing I can think of is speaking to the doctors who have already seen her and seeing if they can get a response from the MSU department (assuming they just told you to make the appointment instead of making the referral). Good luck and godspeed. I'll be thinking of you both. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grey Posted November 13, 2004 Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 Jim, Does she have any of the following symptoms? Besides the metallic taste, is she overcome by an unusual odor but from no discernable cause? Is she experiencing flashbacks? I am not a medical doctor but that metallic taste that she is experiencing may be important. Feel free to PM me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7/4 Posted November 13, 2004 Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 My thoughts are with you and your wife Jim. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.A.W. Posted November 13, 2004 Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 None, but my god, my thoughts and hopes are with you all. JSngry has said all I can think of to say. Same here. Count me in as well, Jim, and everybody else here, I'm sure. Absolutely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bertrand Posted November 13, 2004 Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 (edited) Jim, We are all thinking about you in this difficult time. I am absolutely no medical expert, but it seems to me that you cannot wait until Wednesday. One thought I had is that it could be an aneurysm. Perhaps that would explain why they wrote something about an abnormality in the brain. I would try to see a doctor today, either the emergency room or possibly a week-end physicians' office center (there are such centers in DC). I can't believe the MSU didn't call you back. Good luck, Bertrand. Edited November 13, 2004 by bertrand Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alankin Posted November 13, 2004 Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 No real advice other than to be persistent with asking the doctors questions. Sometimes they're busy, or paternalistic, or think the patient doesn't want to know what's going on or won't understand. I wish her good luck and a quick recovery. And be persistent. Keep calling back until they get sick of you. Ask questions. Be a pain.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Alfredson Posted November 13, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 Jim, Does she have any of the following symptoms? Besides the metallic taste, is she overcome by an unusual odor but from no discernable cause? Is she experiencing flashbacks? I am not a medical doctor but that metallic taste that she is experiencing may be important. Feel free to PM me. She just had the metallic taste, which is now gone. At first we thought this whole thing might've been related to the fact that she just had all her amalgams taken out about a week before these symptoms appeared. I've read articles about mercury poisoning and there are some studies out there that show that amalgams lose mercury (which is why they shrink and have to be replaced after awhile) and also that drilling them out can cause mercury vapor to escape. But none of that has been confirmed by the ADA and the metallic taste is gone. Also, I was just talking to my sister who is a physical therapist and she said the test that the chiropracter performed is called a Vertebral Artery test. I guess it's the vertebral arteries, not the carotid, that supply blood to the brain. She also said the thing that's probably hanging up the doctors is that everything is on her left side. The right side of the brain controls the left side of the body, but it controls the right side of the face. In other words, it should be the right side of the face and her left arm, shoulder, etc, not "left" everything. Weird. She is having a lot of pressure/dull pain today and more wooziness. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grey Posted November 13, 2004 Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 Jim, I don't want to sound like an alarmist but I got to go with Bertrand on this. Don't wait till Wednesday. I would deal with this today, if at all possible, particularly with the additional symptoms you noted today. With many medical issues time is critical. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Gould Posted November 13, 2004 Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 This is probably immaterial, but I do recall reading about Rudy Tomjanovitch when he was cold-cocked by ... whoever it was. I seem to remember that the team doctor asked him if he had a metallic taste in his mouth and he said yes and the doctor explained that it was spinal fluid and that he had to get to the hospital immediately. As I say, probably immaterial especially since the symptom has gone away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A Lark Ascending Posted November 13, 2004 Report Share Posted November 13, 2004 Can't offer any advice, Jim, but I hope this all works out well for your wife and yourself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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