Some right heart strain isn't at all unusual with PE, in fact it's almost to be expected. If your echo looked good at just two weeks after, then I would say in terms of long term damage to your heart, you don't have anything to worry about. Even the fact that the doctor checked it so soon afterward to me indicates he didn't expect it to be a lingering problem. Sometimes effects on the heart can be seen up to around six months after and they still resolve on their own. Most of the time, once you're in treatment and your body takes care of the clots, your heart goes right back to normal because it's not being strained by trying to pump clots through your system.

I agree with ShilosMommy, I had a massive bi-lateral PE Sept 14. I had an echo while still in the hospital and it showed fairly extensive right heart strain, but even then the doc was assuring that my heart would recover fully. I had a second echo at 6 months and it was "almost" back to normal and a cardiologist said there was no need for more followup, that they were very convinced that I would have no permanent damage. It is amazing how much docs don't really explain. Thank goodess for these forums. Hope you are back to enjoying your pregnancy!

Stephanie

Hi, I agree with the others. I had heart damage that corrected itself within about a year. My doctor did explain to me when I was in the hospital that most damage corrects itself over time and that I'd be monitored with periodic echos to be sure.

I'm totally fine, completely recovered. So if your doc said you're heart looks good two weeks after the PE, check that one off your list of things to worry about.

You guys are so great and helpful! The lack of information that comes with this overwhelming diagnosis is staggering. But here it's like information is at your fingertips and with people who know exactly what you are going through! It's amazing. Thank you all and trust me I'm sure you'll hear from me again:)

wilssteph: Now that I'm sort of working my way out of the fog I'm making an effort to focus on the baby and planning for him takes my mind off things for a while.

Ditto. I also followed up with a cardiologist. He isn't very interested in me anymore, 9 months out. I'll have one more echo and, assuming all looks good, he will be done with me! He was fabulous in the hospital explaining how the heart is affected by a PE, but it is disturbing how much info we all did NOT get! It's really staggering.

I sometimes think we got more information than we realized but we weren't able to process it because of the shock of the entire event. I feel like I got a good amount of info, enough to keep me posted on what was happening to me when I was in the hospital. For every procedure I had while in the hospital, and I had a few, there was an explanation. I don't know how meaningful a detailed clinical description would have been at that time. I had a filter and that was explained. I had a blood transfusion before I had the filter because my blood counts were too low, and that was explained. I mean, there's not much to tell with the heart stuff; it literally is just a situation of here's the problem, it usually resolves over time, but lets monitor to find out. That's really all it is.

I think sometimes it's just hard for us to wrap our minds around the fact that when you're diagnosed, it's all so critical and urgent, so how could it the possible. That anticlimactic part can feel like you are left hanging.

That's how I see that time, now that it's no longer so fresh f or me.

I agree with rmb that I am sure there were some things I didn't take in while I was at the hospital. I didn't get an explanation for every test that was taken, but I was eventually told in a summary meeting with the doctor what was going on and then he did come back the next morning and he questioned me about what we talked about the day before so he could ascertain how much I had understood. The night I showed up in the emergency room was a busy one and so I have zero information until I was actually told I was going to be admitted. By then I had done a bunch of testing with no explanation. Once out of the hospital, I was the first person my doc had treated with PE. She is very thorough and very conservative and so she did an excellent job asking questions of pulmonologists and cardiologists, but even she was frustrated sometimes by the lack of direction she was given by the specialists. For instance, she wanted to know if there should be repeat testing of the tests that were done in the hospital at 6 months to gauge my progress and she got a lot of conflicting opinions about what to do. She also lost a battle with the pulmonology dept when she wanted an ultrasound on my calves (where most of my pain is) and they told her as a policy they don't ultrasound below the knee. She convinced a technician to do it and they have found clots in superficial veins 3 months after I was on blood thinners, but she doesn't know what that means because they never did an ultrasound when I was in the hospital. So, as we all know, clinical care as much as we would like it to be better (and I think clinicians in general want to do a good job) is imperfect.

Sorry my post had such weird typos. I was typing on my phone and well, that's how that goes. I meant to say it's hard to imagine how it could possibly be so anticlimactic.

Anyway, I agree that sometimes is just the lack of agreement between medical professionals and I do wonder sometimes if it really just comes down to lack of experience with PEs and DVTs, particularly in younger (and healthy) people. I guess that's why they call it "practicing" medicine.

That not doing clots below the knee... that's not an uncommon protocol, I learned.

I really have to thank you guys on this forum, I really don't know what type of state I would be in without reading your posts. I was discharged from hospital with very little information and left to educate myself. I suffered a large bilateral PE 9 weeks after having my baby. I have Factor 2 and was on lmwh 6 weeks postpartum. I went to the doctor with classic PE symptoms and told my doctor that I was worried I had a PE due to Factor 2 and two episodes of thrombophlebitis between 36-38 weeks pregnant. He just fobbed me off told me I was tired and anaemic only for me to return for a 2nd opinion 4 days later hardly able to breath. D-dimer 994 and CT scan revealed three large clots in my lungs with moderate right heart strain. Results from Echo said pressure was 44. I'm now 9 weeks after this episode. I don't have shortness of breath climbing the stairs anymore or walking. I feel I can take deep breaths and my heart is resting between 65-70 most nights. I have developed extremely bad anxiety as a result of reading about pulmonary hypertension. I'm absolutely terrified I have it. In the last few days I've started to feel lightheaded but I don't know if it's anxiety that's causing it. I have a pulse oximetry and my oxygen reading is always between 95-99%. I also have a blood pressure monitor and my blood pressure is within the normal range. I was due to have an echo today to check my heart but got to hospital and was told the machine was broken!! I feel like a nervous wreck now. Reading some of your posts on here tonight about the right heart strain has helped me somewhat so thank you so much. I just feel like I've been discharged from hospital and abandoned it's horrible.