I talked to him yesterday - my little brother had a heart attack while mowing the lawn and was taken to the hospital in an ambulance, had just gotten two stents, needs a third but he must have been under too long or something, they couldn't get it done, having it done today or tomorrow. Even worse, since he's not vaccinated (he wrongly believes he caught it in Jan 2020, literally impossible, only a few hundred cases at the time in the US, all at major international travel cities), he cannot return to the hospital until he passes a 10 day quarantine once he goes home - hard to believe, but I think that means if he has another MI they won't admit him - at least that's what my Dad said. Maybe one of the ER docs here will read this and chime in on whether that's even legal (in theory ERs cannot legally refuse any patient who shows up), and what their hospital policies are for situations like this.
Now that's every male in my family with CVD except me, two with MI's and the 3rd barely avoided one - I believe thanks to me playing aerobic sports all year round up until age 43, a decent diet, and Vascepa, plus the vast amount of medical care I've gotten since 2005 - I get poked and prodded by various talented PTs several times a week and get blood/urine tests at least once a year - no other male in my family exercised at all during their lives except for my older brother walking a couple miles/day after he'd already been stented. Can't discount the host of antioxidants and other supportive DS I have taken daily for 15 yrs either - my bro ate like crap, had a horrible family life (should have been divorced 20 yrs ago, won't because he'll lose his daughter), and likely has had a major depressive disorder for years too - lots of stress and no way to release it. Each of my PT sessions involves a little mental therapy too - talking about what's bothering you helps point them in the direction they need to go, as many physical problems are actually manifestations of mental or nervous system stresses.
While talking to my Dad, he told me he's actually tested positive for COVID within the last 3 weeks - results of ELISA tests that measure IgG and IgM antibody levels, the same kind of viral tests I get annually. Doesn't say 100% he has an active infection, but if you're positive for IgG it means you're recently been infected - IgM will be positive your entire life once you've had a infection, says nothing about your current status. Couldn't get him to say he'd gotten confirmation via a PCR test, he wasn't exactly thinking straight (can't blame him) - he said he's never had any symptoms, and his recent vaccine antibody level tests showed his were down to 40, very low. It's like the Virgin Mary - how the hell did he get infected when he's locked in his house except for doctor/hospital trips for his cardio/oncology checkups and IVs, plus the grocery store where he's masked wearing gloves? I think he got it at a medical facility, hard as that is to believe.
In any case, he's alive, thank god, must have caught Delta and survived it w/o even getting the sniffles. He said when PFE's new antiviral drug combo gets EUA his house will be open to the family again - praying that happens before Xmas but I don't think the FDA will move that fast.
Thanks for asking and listening - these posts have helped me keep my head on straight through this difficult time.
The Thought Police: To censor and protect. Craig Bruce
