hubby's grandmother keeps passing out

[tiggger1]

Ok I m not asking for any medical advice but I am asking for ideas. My hubands grandmother is in the hospital again, the second time in less than a month for dizziness and passing out. The last time she was in, they couldnt find anything wrong and told her she had a virus..( they did all kinds of blood work and tests and also made her have a cat scan, MRI, and some sort of Heart scan.. ) She was weak for a while and was just starting to feel back to normal, when last night she complained of dizziness and passed out again. She was taken to the hospital by ambulance and hopefully they will find out why she is passing out... anyone have any simular issues?

 

[Evil Genius]

When my mom was doing that they found a blockage in her heart.

 

[momof3disneyholics]

When my grandmother was doing that they ended up putting a pacemaker in her. She's still alive 10 years later and doing great! My DH said she'll out live us all, all she needs is a few replacement parts!

 

[tiggger1]

thanks.. My mil called me and said she is still dizzy. Last time at the hospital, after that one dizzy spell she said she was fine. Now she is dizzy whenever she gets up. so hopefully they will find something....

 

[CathrynRose]

I have no advice... but hugs to gramma.

I, myself, have dizzy spells a LOT and I hate them. Id rather nauseated, headaches, back pains - then the dizzy. The dizzy feels so out of control, so 'OMG! What is happening/wrong!?'

Mine personally - turned out to be anxiety (isnt it amazing what simply your mind can do? For real!!!) I got a Xanax prescription and alllll those dizzy spells that made me panic and think I was dying, suddenly disappeared. I have to seriously thank GOD for Xanax. I feel 'normal'.

Again - huggies to Grandma.....dizzies SUCK!

 

[The Mystery Machine]

My 11yodd passes out as well from anxiety, when she is sick, tired/hot or claustrophobic.
She passed out in the shower a couple of weeks ago.

She has had 2 echo's, 1 EEG, and an MRI. We went to the cardiologist and a neurologist.

They could not pinpoint the cause. They did call it a "vasal vagal" response however my nurse friends argue with me and tell me that is a crock.

I hope they find the cause!!!!!! Sending good vibes.

 

[Plantlady]

My grandpa passed out a few times, but since he got his pacemaker, he says he feels like he has 20 years left in him. (He's 94).

Huggs. to your grandma.. I hope they find the answer soon!

 

[tiggger1]

no new yet.. hopefully tommorrow morning

 

[Longsx3]

Could be in need of a pacemaker or she could be suffering from Oxygen depervation.

 

[ckret01]

Make sure she had no exposure to carbon monoxide in her home. My neighbor had that happen and he felt very dizzy and out of it and the hospital took a few days to find out what it was. This might not have anything to do with your husbands grandmother but its just a thought.

 

[CajunDixie]

thanks.. My mil called me and said she is still dizzy. Last time at the hospital, after that one dizzy spell she said she was fine. Now she is dizzy whenever she gets up. so hopefully they will find something....

Key words in the quote are "whenever she gets up" So based on that alone I'd suggest Orthostatic Hypotension. From my book In some individuals, the blood pressure decreases suddenly when the person stands up. It is more common in smaller females, the elderly, and patients who are dehydrated or bleeding internally. Causes vary: volume loss (bleeding or diarrhea) is one.
Findings: An increase of pulse rate of 10-20 beats per minute or greater with a change in position. A decrease in systolic blood pressure of 10-20 mm Hg or great. Symptoms of weakness, dizziness, or feeling like one is going to pass out. Even w/o those changes if the patient experiences symptoms with positional changes they can be positive for orthostatic hypotension.
Patient can be tested in a clinical setting by monitoring BP and pulse with PT lying down then moved to a sitting position. Standig should not be used as a test due to possibility of injuries.

 

[NotUrsula]

What Dixie said. Orthostatic hypotension, aka postural hypotension. That seems like the most obvious thing, but a lot of doctors don't test for it for some reason. Make sure that she asks them to do it. At a hospital they can just put one of the timed cuffs on you and ask you to sit up right before it kicks on.

 

[tonilea]

My MIL had a similar problem - several episodes of blacking out, turns out she had sleep apnea and was actually falling asleep right in the middle of walking or doing whatever. It has been several years and she has only fallen once since getting her CPAP machine.

 

[golfgal]

My FIL kept passing out too. His turned out to be diabetes. The problem they had was that his natural blood sugar level was different then normal so his tests 'looked' normal. They suspected this so they put him on a diabetic diet. He kept having all kinds of problems. My MIL thought in his case he wasn't getting enough food. They increased his food counts and has done great ever since. He is VERY active and I think that throws his numbers off too.

 

[disneynutt1225]

Key words in the quote are "whenever she gets up" So based on that alone I'd suggest Orthostatic Hypotension. From my book In some individuals, the blood pressure decreases suddenly when the person stands up. It is more common in smaller females, the elderly, and patients who are dehydrated or bleeding internally. Causes vary: volume loss (bleeding or diarrhea) is one.
Findings: An increase of pulse rate of 10-20 beats per minute or greater with a change in position. A decrease in systolic blood pressure of 10-20 mm Hg or great. Symptoms of weakness, dizziness, or feeling like one is going to pass out. Even w/o those changes if the patient experiences symptoms with positional changes they can be positive for orthostatic hypotension.
Patient can be tested in a clinical setting by monitoring BP and pulse with PT lying down then moved to a sitting position. Standig should not be used as a test due to possibility of injuries.

My husband's grandmother was just diagnosed with this a few weeks ago. She'd be completely fine one minute while sitting, and then go to stand up and pass out. Her doctors recommended keeping her hydrated and keeping an eye on her. God bless her, she's 92 and this is the first time she's been sick in all her life. I think that's pretty good for 92.

 

[tiggger1]

Thanks..

the first time she passed out she was working at the soup kitchen, so I believe she was standing ( but could have been sitting down) When they took her to the hospital, she apparently had no more dizzy spells ( but them she isnt the one to complain..last year, she fell down the stairs at the soup kitchen, possibly from passing out and didnt tell anyone ( even my fil who drove her home) for 2 days and then ended up in the hospital with broken ribs, a sprained arm and a bruised lung)

this time she was home, not sure if she got up to go to the bathroom and passed out or what ( she doesnt remember) She called both my mil and aunt and they drove there and called an ambulance because she was still dizzy and was still complaining of dizziness at the hospital. My Mil said that maybe because she is still dizzy that they might have a better chance in finding whats wrong..

im going to call the house at around 9 and let you know what they say

 

[Disney Doll]

My 11yodd passes out as well from anxiety, when she is sick, tired/hot or claustrophobic.
She passed out in the shower a couple of weeks ago.

She has had 2 echo's, 1 EEG, and an MRI. We went to the cardiologist and a neurologist.

They could not pinpoint the cause. They did call it a "vasal vagal" response however my nurse friends argue with me and tell me that is a crock.

I hope they find the cause!!!!!! Sending good vibes.

Then your nurse friends have never found someone passed out on a toilet because they were straining to move their bowels and vaso-vagaled. It's not a crock, I assure you. I have had to call our hospital's emergency response team more than once for a vaso-vagal response.

OP, usually passing out is cardiac related. The heart skips a couple of beats, evrything goes blank. Or, the heart beats irregularly, throws a little clot to the brain which causes a brief blockage and everything goes out. Some people call this a mini-stroke or TIA (Transient Ischemic Attack). Of course, there could also be something going on in her brain, such as a tumor or aneurysm...something that's pressing somewhere.

The dizziness could be a middle or inner ear thing, but it is usually not accompanied by passing out. It's usually just dizziness.

The dizziness/passing out could be from low blood sugar. Is she diabetic? Does it happen more often at a specific time of the day? If so, it could be that her sugar "drops" around that time of day. For example, if it happens most frequently first thing in the morning, maybe her sugar lowers overnight, so when she stands up, poof! A bedtime snack or a morning snack before she even gets out of bed could solve that pretty easily.

Keep us posted. She'll be in my prayers.

 

[ElizaB39]

low blood pressure?

 

[mickeyboat]

Disney Doll is thinking the same thing I am - TIA - and she has a lot more knowledge and experience than I do.

Hope she is feeling better, soon.

Denae

 

[CajunDixie]

My 11yodd passes out as well from anxiety, when she is sick, tired/hot or claustrophobic.
She passed out in the shower a couple of weeks ago.

She has had 2 echo's, 1 EEG, and an MRI. We went to the cardiologist and a neurologist.

They could not pinpoint the cause. They did call it a "vasal vagal" response however my nurse friends argue with me and tell me that is a crock.

I hope they find the cause!!!!!! Sending good vibes.

What type of nurses are these? Do they work in a Dr office or an ER? I won't do the whole nurses VS emt/medics but nurses do not see what we see when we're actually in the patients home. Do they say it's a crock because they haven't themselves ever seen a patient with this or because your daughter is so young?

Thanks..

the first time she passed out she was working at the soup kitchen, so I believe she was standing ( but could have been sitting down) When they took her to the hospital, she apparently had no more dizzy spells ( but them she isnt the one to complain..last year, she fell down the stairs at the soup kitchen, possibly from passing out and didnt tell anyone ( even my fil who drove her home) for 2 days and then ended up in the hospital with broken ribs, a sprained arm and a bruised lung)

this time she was home, not sure if she got up to go to the bathroom and passed out or what ( she doesnt remember) She called both my mil and aunt and they drove there and called an ambulance because she was still dizzy and was still complaining of dizziness at the hospital. My Mil said that maybe because she is still dizzy that they might have a better chance in finding whats wrong..

im going to call the house at around 9 and let you know what they say

She'll need to be honest with the Dr. and tell them exactly what she is doing prior to it happening. Ask her about falling down the steps and ask her if she did faint. Is it possible someone can stay with her a few days and they can see what she's doing prior to the episode?

Then your nurse friends have never found someone passed out on a toilet because they were straining to move their bowels and vaso-vagaled. It's not a crock, I assure you. I have had to call our hospital's emergency response team more than once for a vaso-vagal response.

Exactly! It's always fun getting dispatched for this because people are too embarassed to say where they are and what happened.