I need a new cardiologist

[Lauren]

I know that there are a few of you from NH. I was just wondering if anyone knew of a good cardiologist in the area. I'm willing to travel to Boston, if need be. I'm not very happy w the care i have been receiving and i really don't even want to go see her anymore. She wants to keep me on med's forever and I agreed w her until i came to this site and saw some of your stories. To top it all of I was told after my six weeks on a vent. that i had to get a tubal. It was not optional because subsequent pregnancies would indeed kill me. I had no idea that this was optional. I have listened to her now for four agonizing years and i really can't take it anymore. I feel like a test subject for christ sake. Please help. I really wanted to have a girl, because i have two boys and this kills me. I'm so frustrated!!!!!! :(

[Karen T]

Lauren
Right after I was diagnosed, I went to Brigham and Woman's hospital in Boston to their heart failure clinic. I was assigned a cardiologist that I stayed with for the first 1 1/2 yrs. I felt that I was not "sick enough" for him to take me seriously. I have heard other women who also go there and see a different doctor, (female, I believe the name is something like Stevens, Stephenson, etc) and love her. Also, the Director of Cardiology at B&W is very knowlegable in PPCM (I cannot think of his name, but I'm sure Dr. Fett knows). It's worth checking out as we are "so close". Good luck!

[dawn]

I was treated at Beth Israel in Boston. I didn't have a positive experience at B&W's, but I do know many women who have.

Dr. Julian Aroesty (http://www.bidmc.harvard.edu/sites/bidmc/Find_a_doc/doc_detail.asp?sid=41414643474243)

I highly recommend him. The staff adored him as well. A sincerely good man. Very much straightforward, no sugarcoating. But I appreciated that.

Good luck in finding the right fit with a doctor. Trust is so important, and you're right on to listen to your intuition.

dawn

[jmonte]

I see Dr. Lynne Warner Stevenson at the Brigham. She is really good and So highly recommended. I saw a couple of specialists in Chicago and they said to me that one of THE TOP CHF docs was right there in Boston, and it was her. So I switched and feel very good about my choice. Call me or email me if you want more info. 617-670-1721.

[carriep]

The dr at Brigham and Women's that is very up on ppcm is Dr. Kenneth Baughmann (pronounced boffman). My cardio actually trained under him in NYC and says he is a stellar cardio period. But I know Dr. Fett has mentioned him before as well.

[SerenaWelsh]

Lauren,

If you're not comfortable with your doctor, you should definately find another one. In my own experience, you can have two doctors telling you the same thing, but be more comfortable hearing it from one than you are hearing it from the other.
I hope I'm not out of line with the rest of this. You seem very disappointed that your doctor wants to keep you on meds, and you desire another baby, but they're telling you definately not.
I just want to point out that with your EF of 39%, your'e not going to find another doctor who will disagree right now. There are so many women on this board who have recovered. Some have been taken off of meds, some have had more children.
Maybe the day will come that your heart is fully recovered and you can make a more informed decision about meds and another pregnancy, but until then I'd hate to see you disappointed in the medical community in general because they are not supportive.
It's so hard, but we have to try not to judge our own recovery progress and capabilities by holding them up to how others have responded to treatment. Biology doesn't give in to peer pressure.

I'm a little curious about your dieting, too. Did your doctor approve the drastic weightloss with South Beach? I've just read so much about low/no carb diets being bad for your heart, especially if it's already weakened.

[Lauren]

Serena,

She is the one who recommended the South Beach Diet. I was surprised too. I have been off of it for about two weeks now and already gained a few pounds back. I had a major weight gain w my last pregnancy. I was two hundred pounds when i gave birth. I started my pregnancy at 130. I am usually about 130, but skyrocked to about 160, which i think made her more uncomfortable than it made me. When a doctor is telling me that i need to lose weight then i tend to get a little worried. Don't worry about me, I'm eating M&M's right now. @%!! that South Beach crap. I"M hungry!@!!!!!!!

[SerenaWelsh]

:p
Girl after my own heart.
I can leave the chocolate alone unless it's that time of the month. It's usually bread that does me in.

[Anny311]

Hi

I am at B&W too. I have Dr. Fang, and he is conservative and likes meds but I am ok with that as I am not having side effects (he did say if I was having side effects he would change or drop them but I feel great, so why bother, KWIM?). I also saw Dr Givertz in the hospital who came highly recommended by my former boss, a nephrologist at BMC and I liked him alot too, but I only saw him twice. He was so nice to me while I was there. B&W has a great reputation for cardiology and they probably see a lot of PPCMers since they do so many deliveries. And Lynne Stevenson is supposed to be great. I think I would go with her if I could pick but I was assigned in house. I hear she does mostly transplant right now, but used to take all the PPCMers.

Another closer option for you might be NSMC in Salem MA. They have good cardiologists and you could easily get a referral through B&W since they are affiliated. I could give you Dr. Fang's nurses' name and I am sure she would be happy to talk to you. I am a firm believer in being comfortable with your doctor. Cardiologists are a dime a dozen in this part of the world so why not shop around a bit?

The medication issue is tough and I think it is tough for cardiologists too. Dr. Fang told me that he went to a conference with all of these top cardiologists and when someone asked what they would do with a case of cardiomyopathy where the patient's EF had improved, half said they would keep them on the meds and the other half said they would stop them.

Doctors are important people in our lives. You need to feel comfortable. Good luck!!!

Anny