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“Currently 17 people die every day in the US waiting for a transplant, with more than 100,000 reportedly on the waiting list.” David Bennett was only 57. Hear
by melling 5y ago
“Currently 17 people die every day in the US waiting for a transplant, with more than 100,000 reportedly on the waiting list.”
David Bennett was only 57. Heart disease, and related issues are a big problem.
While I’m hopeful for this technology, I wish there was a way for people to see heart issues coming much earlier in life so they can attempt to treat, or delay, the problem.
- dt3ft 5y agoOr, change the way they live, work less and enjoy what little life they have ahead?
- idontknowifican 5y agoyour view indicates a lack of empathy for folks that live differently than you
- deleted 5y ago[deleted]
- bob66 5y ago
- DiffEq 5y agoI don't mean to be callous by this comment but if you mean "live differently" as living unhealthy well I have a problem with this. People that live in unhealthy ways cause all sorts of grief to others as well as financial loss. It is not right that I have to pay for people that decide to essentially eat themselves to death; it is not right that my wife and I had to care for my mother for months because she decided to eat herself to death. Heart disease and diabetes are all too common "paid" for by others - they should choose differently and while we can't make them choose differently we should for sure tell them that their choices are not "o.k.".
- ejb999 5y agoI agree - people need to be able to be called out when they are making bad decisions - especially w/regards to their health, and they especially should be called out by their health care providers - many doctors these days won't even broach the subject of a patient's weight, for fear of offending them - and I have seen patients file formal complaints against doctors when the doctor notes in their chart that the patient 'is obese'. It is right to tell them they are obese and it is right to encourage people to live healthier - how can you be a health care provider and not be allowed to call out people who are eating themselves to death?
- mulmen 5y agoLiving is unhealthy. It’s universally fatal. In a free society we (should) retain autonomy over our bodies. This isn’t purely philosophical, it is practical. Who decides what is healthy? What if they are wrong? How many eggs should I eat today to meet your personal definition of healthy living? And what do I do when it differs from someone else?
- mrmuagi 5y ago> Living is unhealthy. Tips fedora. In all seriousness, I think there's obvious medical definitions for unhealthy in regards to addictions, weight, etc. Let's not philosophize some libertarian defense of something that obviously restricts and constricts one's freedom -- the ability to move an inch without your joints buckling. I can sympathise with you if you have suffered from anti-fat bullying and adopt defensive attitudes in reaction -- but what the hell am I reading.
- kelnos 5y agoThis is kinda an extremist straw man, though. I don't think anyone is claiming that the fields of nutrition and physical fitness are settled and that we know everything about what people need to do to be healthy. But if you're obese and eat junk food all day, or if you just sit around on your couch and never get any exercise, and then end up with (for example) heart disease, that is something that was likely preventable, and we have a pretty good idea why and what could have been done differently. I'm force to subsidize these people's health care to some extent, and I think that's unfair. The whole autonomy thing is tricky. We live in a society where we "care" for each other in collective ways (taxes etc.). People who want to live in that society lose some autonomy as a part of the bargain. I don't think this means we should legally force people not to eat or drink certain things. But I do think that (for example) denying people liver transplants when they won't stop drinking excess amounts of alcohol is fine. They can have their autonomy, but then they have to live with the consequences of their choices.
- lostlogin 5y agoHow would you apply this to a child, or convey it to their parents? The procedure has a profound effect on the family that receives the heart and on the donor family. Hearing donor family members describe what it’s like knowing their child’s heart is still beating somewhere is something you don’t forget.
- hombre_fatal 5y agoWell, we certainly do set up people for [heart] failure in our culture. Standard American diet is atrocious and I often day-dream about what it might take to transition to a culture around healthy, whole foods. It's hard to imagine. And looking at the westernizing diet of the rest of the world, maybe that's a ship that never sails back. Maybe tech breakthroughs are the only hope we have if major cultural reform around health and food never arrives.
- tommoor 5y agoTo everyone that reads this: If you've not had a checkup in the last year go and get one! It'll be included on your health insurance and the blood draw will include things like if you have high cholesterol.
- rmellow 5y agoIn the US I presume? Canadians have a harder time... In Canada/Ontario, you have to convince your doctor to give you a cholesterol test, e.g. family history. It won't be done preventively [1]. Even if you manage to get tested, if you're under 40 the doctor won't care and there will be no followup. [1] https://exechealth.ca/ontario-drops-annual-physicals/ https://exechealth.ca/ontario-drops-annual-physicals/
- testesttest 5y agoA test in the US < $50 and is easy to schedule without having a doctor involved at LabCore or similar. Is that an option in CA?
- rmellow 5y agoThere are private clinics one can become a member of, but this is extremely uncommon and most people don't know it's an option. Costs upwards of $3,000 annually.
- foota 5y agoOnly 3,000? chuckles in American
- xeromal 5y agoYou can go to quest diagnostics or labscorb and order yourself a test for under 200$ (no insurance needed) that would do an entire panel on you. I did this and then called a teledoc for like 40$ (copay) and had them go over hte results with me. It's pretty sweet.
- fredsmith219 5y agoHaving trouble taking satisfactory breaths while laying flat? See a doctor. Feeling out of breath abnormally while working out? See a doctor. Got an Apple Watch? Just for kicks take your ekg. It is crude but can detect abnormal heart rhythms.
- MPSimmons 5y agoYou probably know this, but for anyone else reading - I have an Apple watch that has the EKG. It is a two-contact EKG, so it's limited in what it can see. It also requires you to actively look at it (you have to touch the crown while it's reading). It did successfully diagnose a bout of bigeminy that I had, but unfortunately my cardiologist didn't think it was important, and I ended up having a heart attack anyway. But I lived, and now I have a new cardiologist, so there's that.
- faeyanpiraat 5y agoIsn't that something that you could sue for?
- als0 5y agoI do wonder how it must feel to be a doctor who is one bad call away from being sued or revoked.
- deleted 5y ago[deleted]
- kyleee 5y agowhat's the alternative in practice; having no recourse if a negligent doctor maims or kills you?
- kelnos 5y agoThere's a big difference between negligence and making a good-faith decision based on training and experience that later turns out to be wrong. Actual negligence should, of course, absolutely be punished.
- johnmarcus 5y agoI wish the effect smoking has on the heart was advertised more. People are terrified of cancer and that's all they think about with smoking, but actually far more people die from heart and stroke related illness after smoking than from cancer. I don't know the exact number, but it's a multitude.
- iancmceachern 5y agoIs it an effect if the nicotine?