Today I was at the cardiac ward. Lots of Kuchingnites should be familiar with this new building, standing tall among the old ones within the grounds of the General Hospital. The whole structure of the building is painted in pink and white strips and as my brother say, it is pretty much similar to The Sims Hospital.
We went up to the 3rd floor via the lift to the warding room. The warming baby pink suddenly felt too much to endure. The seriousness of this place and the sudden swift smell of medicine allowed the whole ambiance to engulf you into it. It never felt this way before. Of all my trips to the hospitals, and at times admitted into it; I couldn't explain why this time it felt so different. But pushing that aside, I went in anyway.
Patients, heart patients, they are everywhere. Some stronger ones were allowed to watch TV at the common rooms. (Even they looked weak in their green robe). Others laid in bed; some sound asleep, others are attended by their families and friends. I went in to find mum. A doctor and a nurse is attending to grandma. She looks weak, really week. She was on drips and her already frail and small body, looks like a child's ragged body. My heart instantly did a somersault and paused. ~oh~
My grandma has just went through an angiogram this morning and is now resting. According to the doctor she shall be discharged tonight. What is an angiogram?
"An angiogram is an X-ray test that uses a special dye and camera (fluoroscopy) to take pictures of the blood flow in an artery (such as the aorta) or a vein (such as the vena cava). An angiogram can be used to look at the arteries or veins in the arms, legs, chest, or belly.
Common angiograms can look at the arteries near the heart (coronary angiogram), lungs (pulmonary angiogram), brain (cerebral angiogram), head and neck (carotid angiogram), legs or arms (peripheral), and the aorta (aortogram).
During an angiogram, a thin tube called a catheter is placed into the femoral blood vessel (femoral artery or vein) in the groin or just above the elbow (brachial artery). The catheter is guided to the area to be studied. Then an iodine dye (contrast material) is injected into the vessel to make the area show clearly on the X-ray pictures. This method is known as conventional or catheter angiogram. The angiogram pictures can be made into regular X-ray films or stored as digital pictures in a computer.
An angiogram can find a bulge in a blood vessel (aneurysm). It can also show narrowing or a blockage in a blood vessel that affects blood flow. An angiogram can show if coronary artery disease is present and how bad it is.
A magnetic resonance angiogram (MRA) or computed tomography angiogram (CTA) may be an option instead of an angiogram. Each of these tests is less invasive than a standard angiogram, but a CTA involves a dye injection and radiation exposure. "
(Web MD, 2008)
Grandma's left hand arteries were to small to insert a 6-inch catherer into it. Therefore, they had to it on her upper left-side of her pelvic bone, somewhere around the appendix. And the result is, instant bruise, much like when someone give you a black eye, except the surface space is wider. Most of the heart patients in this ward can be seen with this bruise. Grandma just look much too fraile in the bundle of blanket. But the doctor gave permission for her to go home.
Mum said three main arteries were detected. It is not a good sign. Doctor told mum that grandma will possibly have to go for heart bypass surgery, but a board of doctors will have to check on how bad artherosclerosis is in the coronary arteries and to consider the many factors that are not going well for grandma, in order to permit this surgery to take place.
"Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstances." (1 Corinthians 13:7) Please be well....
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