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Suggest Treatment For Lack Of Appetite And Low Heart Rate
Question: My dearest and oldes friend is in the Hospital having not eaten for 7 days. Vitals are not what they should be, heart rate 40 beats min...unknown but presumend lowered BP . Tests have ruled out anything to do with heart itself, and test have ruled out Pancrease. He is being fed intraveineously....No known virus. Sounds like he is shutting down?
Brief Answer:
POSSIBILITIES
Detailed Answer:
Hi
I am Dr Mittal
I have read your query.
There are a lot of causes besides the heart that can cause such problems.
Another possible cause is an infection.
Sepsis, or infection that has spread to the whole body can do this.
He will need culture tests to rule out infections.
Since he has had a history of alcohol intake, a possibility of wernickes encephalopathy should also be ruled out. An MRI Brain and a neurology opinion will be needed.
And are the kidney levels ok? Build up of creatinine can also cause similar symptoms.
A possible depression also needs to be ruled out.
This itself can cause problems.
And there may be need of a psychiatrist to have a look at him.
But this I feel may be the last possibility.
As is obvious, there are many possible causes. I think a good physician should look it up. And coordinate with other specialities. RT feeding can possibly be started if the doctors there consider it right. It may be better than iv feeds.
Hope that helps.
Best of luck
DrMittal
POSSIBILITIES
Detailed Answer:
Hi
I am Dr Mittal
I have read your query.
There are a lot of causes besides the heart that can cause such problems.
Another possible cause is an infection.
Sepsis, or infection that has spread to the whole body can do this.
He will need culture tests to rule out infections.
Since he has had a history of alcohol intake, a possibility of wernickes encephalopathy should also be ruled out. An MRI Brain and a neurology opinion will be needed.
And are the kidney levels ok? Build up of creatinine can also cause similar symptoms.
A possible depression also needs to be ruled out.
This itself can cause problems.
And there may be need of a psychiatrist to have a look at him.
But this I feel may be the last possibility.
As is obvious, there are many possible causes. I think a good physician should look it up. And coordinate with other specialities. RT feeding can possibly be started if the doctors there consider it right. It may be better than iv feeds.
Hope that helps.
Best of luck
DrMittal
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Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Answered by
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