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Suggest Treatment For The Left Arm
Question: I have an 87 year old female friend who has recently been rushed to the hospital with pain in her left arm. Had stint in artery 4 weeks ago and they put another stint in 40% blocked artery 2 days ago. She seemed to be fine until yesterday after 3 days in hospital. She is hallucinating and talking out of her head. She thinks she's home and wants to clean, etc.. I spoke with a friend who said her father was perfectly fine and within 24 hours was talking out of his head. She said he had a UTI; after treating the UTI he was his old self. She isn't drinking water because she doesn't want to go to bathroom. Could this happen?
Brief Answer:
I would explain as follows:
Detailed Answer:
Hello!
Welcome and thank you for asking on HCM!
I would explain that her situation could be related to a metabolic disorder.
You should know that the brain sometimes in old persons may not function properly in cases of metabolic disorders, dehydration or an infection and fever.
This is because the brain ability to maintain it's own balance decreases with again and it is very easy to fall into confusion and even hallucinations.
But, considering her past medical history, a stroke can not be excluded either.
For this reason,vI would recommend performing some tests to investigate for the possible underlying causes:
- a resting ECG
- a chest x-ray study
- complete blood count for anemia
- kidney and liver function tests
- fasting glucose
- blood electrolytes.
A brain CT scan is necessary to exclude any possible stroke.
An EEG may be needed too.
If all the above tests result normal, I would recommend consulting with a psychiatrist.
You should discuss with her doctor on the above issues.
Kind regards,
Dr.Iliri
I would explain as follows:
Detailed Answer:
Hello!
Welcome and thank you for asking on HCM!
I would explain that her situation could be related to a metabolic disorder.
You should know that the brain sometimes in old persons may not function properly in cases of metabolic disorders, dehydration or an infection and fever.
This is because the brain ability to maintain it's own balance decreases with again and it is very easy to fall into confusion and even hallucinations.
But, considering her past medical history, a stroke can not be excluded either.
For this reason,vI would recommend performing some tests to investigate for the possible underlying causes:
- a resting ECG
- a chest x-ray study
- complete blood count for anemia
- kidney and liver function tests
- fasting glucose
- blood electrolytes.
A brain CT scan is necessary to exclude any possible stroke.
An EEG may be needed too.
If all the above tests result normal, I would recommend consulting with a psychiatrist.
You should discuss with her doctor on the above issues.
Kind regards,
Dr.Iliri
Note: For further queries related to coronary artery disease and prevention, click here.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Vaishalee Punj
Answered by
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