My dad was thinking the same thing about the pulmonary stuff causing the cardiac stuff. He was reminded when he got to his regular doctor's office that he's got asthma. He hasnt had to use an inhaler for over two years, and was told by the doctor that he didnt need to use the Advair discus if he didnt want to at the same time. My dad only seems to get problems with the asthma when he gets a cold or bronchitis, and he hasnt had that for several years now. Just the bronchitis he picked up a few weeks ago.

I'm wondering if the bronchitis aggravated his asthma and caused whatever was going on.

After talking to my dad tonight, I found out that he didnt even think he was having a problem at the time. Three of the nurses up there were complaining about his cough that he had...they didnt want his cold, and one of them said something to the doctor, and the doctor got them all worked up that my dad could be having congestive heart failure or something.

So they pretty much jumped him and made him go to the ER.

It's nice that they had some concern for his health, but the doctor in the ER said that he's not in congestive heart failure, and that he didnt even have any fluid in his lungs. The blood tests they gave him didnt show any signs of a heart attack.

The ER doc gave him a Rx for an inhaler and sent him to his regular doctor. The regular doctor is giving him a new high blood pressure drug because he did have some edema on his ankles, and he's going for the echocardiogram tomorrow afternoon. I get to drive him, so I'm getting a crochet project together to fiddle with while they're torturing my dad. My aunt, a nurse practitoner that works in the heart transplant team at another hospital here said that echo's are painful. She said they press down pretty hard with the ultrasound wand. My dad didnt need to know that, but my aunt always likes to give too much information about stuff.

I'm betting my dad's asthma is getting worse because he's not been able to exercise regularly (my mom is high maintainence and kind of a control freak and wont let him go because "he'll get sweaty".) As soon as he's cleared to exercise, I'm going with him. (I need the exercise too...I'll probably just walk around the track) and if my mom whines about it, we'll leave her home. (she has to option to come too if she wants)

I'm pretty sure they're going to make him go back to see the pulmologist that he saw 2yrs ago when he had a bit of pneumonia.

My aunt really thought it sounded more like a pulmonary problem (she's a fairly good diagnostician for stuff.) She thinks it's probably got something to do with his high blood pressure. My dad's been on meds for that since he was about 15.

So, hopefully this wont be a cardiac problem. It could be, but I'm going to guess that it's got something to do with the asthma.