swiftscout8 said:Nah, I don't think so. They had a different name back then, something from Belup, sounded a bit more intense.
Honestly, it’s the exact same thing. Rimactan might be the liquid version, but that Belup one just goes by a different name... at the end of the day, they're both generic matches because the active ingredient in both is rifampicin ...
It's just like how you've got Advil, Motrin, or just plain old Aspirin... they all do the same job, they're just made by different companies.
swiftscout8 said:The family will probably just get some chemo prophylaxis and call it a day. When we went through it, they gave us this antibiotic—honestly, I can't even recall the name now—but man, it turns basically every bodily fluid a shade of red. You’ll be walking into the bathroom thinking you've got a major problem because everything looks totally bloody for a bit.
Honestly, this isn't some massive outbreak or anything. Like someone mentioned earlier, people pass away every single day from all sorts of illnesses; I really think this whole thing is just being blown way out of proportion by the news media. The meningokok bacteria itself usually just hangs out in your nasopharynx without causing any trouble at all. Even if it manages to slip through the mucous membranes into your system, there's a huge chance it won't do a thing because your immune system will just take it out and clear it out immediately—just like how it deals with other random pathogens every day to keep us healthy. Now, in my opinion, every disease—no matter how mild or deadly it might seem—has that one extreme, super dangerous version that can hit you if everything aligns perfectly, especially if your immune system takes a hit for some reason. Take things like hepatitis, encephalitis, chickenpox, or certain types of pneumonia... those are just a few examples where a sickness can turn so aggressive that someone can go from fine to gone in just a day or two.
In cases like that, when you're dealing with rapidly progressing septic shock, you basically need a stroke of incredible luck for a doctor to catch it instantly and jump straight into heavy doses of antibiotics, intensive support therapy, and aggressive rehydration.
And with this situation... man, I feel like the old saying "bad luck" really applies here; I honestly don't think there was anything anyone could have done differently. 😢 😢
Jamie Clark74, come on, man, do me a favor and tell me what you meant by putting PBS in the thread title?? I nearly choked laughing when I saw the American Broadcasting Corporation mentioned right next to menopause, hysterectomies, and osteoporosis...😁 😁 😉
Look, I should probably start by saying I’m definitely not a doctor, so please don't take anything I say here as a "second opinion." Just think of this as more of a casual chat rather than medical advice. That said, I deal with issues involving messed-up hemodynamics pretty much every day, so I feel okay enough sharing my thoughts a bit more freely. So, when you mentioned that "cough" and especially that feeling of "suffocating," it really made me wonder if the heart is essentially decompensated. People dealing with that often have that gasping for air look, they’re desperately trying to catch their breath, their neck veins look swollen, they get those classic cardiac-related leg swellings, a racing heart, and they can't stand lying flat—they usually have to prop themselves up high just to catch enough sleep. To get rid of that extra fluid, doctors typically use diuretics—stuff like Lasix, Furosemide, Aldactone, or Edemid. Basically, these meds tell the kidneys to flush out a bunch of fluid from the body. By lowering the total amount of fluid circulating in the system, you're indirectly helping the heart (it doesn't have to push as much volume) and the lungs (less fluid leaking into the pulmonary alveoli). Personally, I wouldn't rely on herbal remedies for something like this.
In your second post, you brought up something else that really caught my eye—that there's blood pressure medication being used when the actual issue is angina pectoris. That could very well be what's driving the current situation or even leading to "wet lungs." Here's the thing: someone with angina usually has coronary arteries that are narrowed due to atherosclerotic buildup. Over time, the body tries to compensate for that blockage by bumping up the blood pressure. Because of that, almost all these patients end up with high blood pressure. When the blood flow through those coronaries isn't enough at any given moment, you get that classic pain behind the breastbone that tends to radiate down the left arm, shoulder, or scapula. You’ve probably heard of those symptoms. The go-to fix for that is taking nitroglycerin under the tongue. It hits the bloodstream fast and dilates the vessels—including the coronary ones—so blood can actually flow through. If a coronary artery gets completely blocked, though, that’s when you're looking at a full-blown myocardial infarction and permanent damage to the heart muscle. Now, dropping the blood pressure in these patients isn't without its risks because you're messing with a compensatory mechanism the body has worked hard to set up. If you lower the pressure too much, less blood flows through the coronaries, which weakens the heart muscle, causing the heart to decompensate and pump even worse. It becomes this vicious cycle where the heart just keeps getting weaker, which leads right back to the symptoms you described. So yeah, lowering blood pressure for heart patients, especially those with coronary disease, is a delicate balancing act that carries real danger.
I really think what's needed here is a solid, thorough, and calm cardiology workup, and if things aren't stabilizing, those checkups might need to happen more frequently.
Look, there are a few things you mentioned that really jump out at me as red flags. First off, that "terrible coughing and choking," then the "month-long stint on antibiotics," and finally, this whole "bagful of meds" situation.
If you're saying they've been diagnosed with angina pectoris, then that choking and coughing sounds to me like a certain level of heart failure that you really can't afford to take lightly. Basically, the heart muscle just isn't strong enough to pump all the blood out of the left ventricle. The blood starts "backing up" and pooling in the lungs, and because of how physics works with diffusion, fluid from the blood leaks through the membrane and gets stuck in the lungs. It's what people commonly call "wet lungs." That fluid—whether it's a little or a lot—causes that nasty cough and makes it feel like you're suffocating. You end up gasping for air, getting way too little oxygen, and that lack of oxygen just puts even more strain on an already struggling heart. Treatment needs to be pretty urgent and focused on the root cause, which is the heart weakness. This is strictly cardiologist territory; someone in this position needs to see a specialist, not just a regular GP at a local clinic. And if the prescribed treatment isn't working, honestly, I think you should go back to the cardiologist immediately to complain.
As for the second thing, regarding the antibiotics, I agree that it seems pretty mindless at first glance. The truth is, here in the States, doctors tend to hand out antibiotics like candy without much critical thought most of the time. Usually, the doctor's logic is just, "I'll throw an antibiotic at them just to be safe, so I don't have to worry about it..." In your case, since "fluid in the lungs" is basically a playground for infections, the doctor probably figured they'd play it safe and cover any potential infection with antibiotics. But... a whole month is way too long... To make a long story short, that cough is likely coming from the heart, and that's where the solution needs to be found.
Regarding the third point about the "bag of meds"... Hmm... if you're heading to the hospital, I'd suggest doing some digging first. Talk to folks you know or just ask around to find out which doctors are actually decent, and then try to catch them on one of their shifts. The thing is, I know there are absolute superstars out there, but there are also those "cowboy" types who I wouldn't even trust with my dog. If you land a great specialist, awesome; but if you get stuck with the cowboy type... well, damn, you might end up with a "bag of pills" that aren't even dosed right, or that clash with each other, or are totally outdated... etc., etc. I'm not saying that's what's happening to you, but if there hasn't been any improvement for months, that's what I would do...
Scott Allen10 said:Honestly, I don't think it's even an issue.
I was over at Mayo Clinic for a checkup recently, and my wife noticed the doctor wrote down something about me having a "sigmoid colon." I had no clue what that meant, so I figured I'd hop on here and ask you guys. Looking at everything everyone's said, it seems like nothing to worry about, and since the doctor didn't make a big deal out of it during the appointment, it’s probably totally fine.
Thanks, everyone!
Look, if someone actually sat there and told you that you have a "sigmoid colon" like it's some kind of diagnosis, then they clearly don't have a clue what they're talking about.
That’s like me looking at your X-ray and saying, "Hey, just so you know, you've got a skull and some blood in there"—it's just stating the obvious.🙄
They might have meant something else entirely, though I honestly haven't a clue what that could be.
Back pain, sciatica, that total stiffness... man, those things always hit hard. It’s one of those things people just don't get—you're hurting, you can't move right, and that's just how it is.
Honestly, you really ought to see a doctor and try to get a prescription for some Voltaren or something similar to take the edge off.👋
Hmm, I didn't catch all the details, but let me give it a shot...
Look, if your EEU results and your eye doctor are both giving you the thumbs up, there’s a really good chance you aren't dealing with any kind of intracranial growth—like a tumor or anything—that would be triggering those headaches. Honestly, if there was a major neurological issue going on, a neurologist would have picked up on some sort of deficit by now.
That being said, I wouldn't rule out getting a CT or an MRI just to play it safe and rule out one more nasty possibility that an EEU can't spot: an aneurysm. It's basically a bulge in one of your cerebral arteries, and it can cause those vague, hard-to-pin-down headaches. If it turns out to be something like that—though it most likely isn't—you'll want to be seeing a neurosurgeon pretty much immediately.
You might also want to ask about a TCD (transcranial Doppler ultrasound) or a vertebral artery ultrasound. It helps check the blood flow through the two main pathways supplying your brain: the vertebral and the carotid arteries. Sometimes, the vertebral arteries can get a bit "clogged" or restricted, and that lack of steady blood flow to the brain structures can lead to those nagging headaches.
But hey, before you jump into all those heavy scans, my best advice is to check out a pain management clinic. They deal with these kinds of vague, migraine-style pains all the time, and they have some really effective ways to handle them. Most major hospitals in the States have specialized clinics for this stuff, so maybe do a little digging. They offer things like acupuncture (either traditional or laser), TENS units, or even fentanyl patches and other targeted treatments. Trust me, you won't go wrong exploring this route; you'll probably find a method that actually works for you, which means you won't have to keep popping pills all day long. 👍
Look, I definitely know what a sigma is—it’s somewhere right between the descending colon and the rectum—but I honestly thought Eustachius was going to give us some actual specifics about his issue. 😉
Anthony Harris14 said:The sigmoid colon is just a standard part of everyone's anatomy, so honestly, pretty much everybody has one. You might have just misread something or maybe connected some dots that don't actually go together...
Yeah, I’m with you on that, so if you could just throw a few more details our way, it would really help us get the full picture.
Look, if you ask me, it doesn't really matter if the cardiologist works for a private clinic or a public hospital like the VA; what actually matters is whether they specialize in interventional cardiology or not. Those guys are the real pros nowadays, and an interventional specialist is way better equipped to decide if a problem can be fixed through a procedure or if you actually need to see a cardiac surgeon (basically, one is an internist and the other is a hands-on surgeon). A standard cardiologist is more of a desk job—they put on a tie, listen to your heart, check your EKG, look over labs, and manage your meds... But an interventional cardiologist has "dirty hands"—they’re performing coronary angiograms, placing stents in your arteries, and trying to fix the issue right then and there to save you from major surgery instead of just handing you a prescription. Because they do the work themselves, they have a much better gut feeling for whether a procedure is doable or not.
The crew over at Mayo Clinic is top-tier and knows exactly what they're doing. If they give you a diagnosis, you can bet your life it's accurate. The only catch is that since it's a high-end private facility, you're going to be paying for that expertise, and man, those bills definitely aren't cheap for most of us.
Also, saying you have a "hole in your heart" is way too vague to go off of—what kind are we talking about here? Congenital? A septal defect? A valve issue? Give me some actual details! Go ahead and take a look at your paperwork... CLICK HERE AND ASK WHATEVER YOU WANT
Me, a cardiologist?😁 😁 ...not even close... let's just say occasionally (when my wife is in the mood) I play amateur gynecologist...😁 😁 😁 👋
shadowfalcon33 said:If you're just looking to make bank, medical practice probably wasn't your calling to begin with. Besides, there’s nothing stopping a cardiac surgeon from opening their own private clinic and charging whatever they want for heart surgeries. Plus, that "paltry" $7k-$9k range is actually double the average American salary, which honestly isn't nothing.
The reasons why we don't have pediatric cardiac surgeons are way more complicated than just saying "nobody wants to do it."
I definitely agree that the reasons are deeper, but private practice and cardiac surgery really don't mesh the way other specialists here in the States seem to manage it. But hey, that's beside the point right now.
Doctor salaries... man, let me tell you... there isn't a single specialist in our public hospital systems—even the youngest ones—who isn't pulling in at least $9k to $11k a month, even with just a few on-call shifts. Once you factor in years of experience, advanced degrees, or running a department or sub-department, that number jumps up by several thousand more. That’s basically the guaranteed baseline every single month. If someone wants to start adding up cash under the table, gifts, favors, or side gigs after their hospital shift ends... well, you end up with a pretty interesting total that sounds like something straight out of a sci-fi movie to your average American.
Our group of cardiac surgeons is especially unique. These guys are basically "gods"—totally irreplaceable here because you can't find anyone else to step in. You can't exactly fire Jelic at the Mayo Clinic because who else is going to perform the operations? So, there's no way these guys are working for just $7k or $9k; their monthly take-home is easily a fat five-figure sum negotiated directly with the hospital board. Another thing is that training a cardiac surgeon takes an insane amount of work and knowledge. It's top-tier stuff, truly elite surgery. But I honestly think the issue here is that the current surgeons sort of quietly gatekeep the field. I get the impression that even though this specialty is vital for America, they try not to expand it so they can keep it exclusive. By doing that, they stay untouchable and indispensable—basically America's "golden goose."
Technically, we don't have specialized pediatric cardiac surgeons, but our current guys handle some of the simpler heart procedures on kids too. So, I look at this through that same "golden goose" lens (like, "why would we need a dedicated pediatric cardiac surgeon if we can just do all the kid surgeries ourselves? Better to keep it in-house, and if we can't handle it, just send them abroad so we remain the 'main players' in America").
And finally, it's not just about the lead surgeon; you've got a whole little "army" of doctors and nurses involved, which costs a fortune and is likely another reason why things stay the way they are.
And yeah, I agree, Anic is truly 👍 , both as a person and as a pro.
I'm dusting this old thread off because of the latest "breakthrough" from Hebrang, where the department basically pulled the plug on funding for cardiac surgery development in Indianapolis, and now the whole project is likely stuck in limbo. This might be a bit out of place for the health forum, but here we go... Since I'm sitting here in Washington, D.C., I figured I’d try to translate what Hebrang is actually thinking regarding that decision:
"Listen up, you folks back home in the Midwest who pretty much survive on bacon, sausage, and pork rinds—and by the way, you make up the largest chunk of heart patients in America... the Secretary has a special message just for you: screw you!! You were great little voting machines for certain people, but now? You get nothing. Sure, you've got the big medical centers in Washington, D.C., so feel free to wait until you drop dead in line for heart surgery, or you can take out a massive loan to pay for private care over at 'Magdalena.' Or, hey, since God is everywhere, maybe you can just pay for a cheaper mass at church and hope He magically unblocks your arteries or grows you a new valve. The Secretary loves you all dearly!"
quietharbor2 said:There’s actually another major headache with general anesthesia, especially during emergency surgeries rather than scheduled ones. If a patient hasn't had time to empty their stomach, there's a real risk of stomach contents being aspirated into the lungs, which leads to pneumonia. Lately, they've been using supraglottic devices to handle this. Instead of sliding a tube straight down into the trachea, the end of the device is shaped like a mask that sits over the opening of the larynx, partially resting against the esophagus. It lets air through while acting as a shield against aspiration. [/B]
Laryngeal masks are definitely becoming a go-to in anesthesia. They let you ventilate the patient and protect those lungs from aspiration—which, by the way, can absolutely kill someone—all without having to shove anything deep into the trachea, which isn't exactly great for avoiding infections. But I'm a little lost on what you mean regarding aspiration risks during general anesthesia. See, when a patient has an endotracheal tube placed during general anesthesia, the doctors always inflate the "cuff"—that little balloon at the top of the tube. Once that cuff is inflated, it expands to create a tight seal against the tracheal walls, making sure nothing can slip past the tube and up into the airway, including stomach acid. When it's done right, the airway is totally secure from aspiration. To give you a visual, here's what a classic endotracheal tube looks like...
Or maybe you were thinking of something else entirely...😉
Jose Miller3 said:Seriously though, can you actually prove you're a doctor? If so, maybe we'll start taking you a little more seriously.
Look, I’m not a doctor, but like I mentioned before, I spend basically all my time living and breathing this stuff every single day. I mean, does that really make me some kind of clown? 😢
