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My youngest dd's SO is in the hospital with sepsis. (Update)

KidsHappen

By KidsHappen,
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KidsHappen

KidsHappen

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About two weeks ago he came down with this flu that the whole family had. Then this past Sunday my dd informed us that he had been laying on the floor for ten hours straight and couldn't even get up to go to the bathroom. So we called an ambulance and he has been in the hospital ever since. 

His blood pressure is very low, he has a fever, his WBC is very high. He is in a lot of pain which they cannot adequately treat because his blood pressure is so low. He has vegetation in his heart. He is not able to walk and hasn't really been eating either. They have him on gabapentin for the pain and very strong anti-biotics. The infectious disease specialist says that he will be in the hospital for at least a few more days and will probably come home with an IV. He is meeting with a physical therapist tomorrow to work on getting him moving again. 

He is grumpy and miserable. My dd is exhausted. He doesn't have medical insurance so they are stressed about that. Luckily, they live with us so we will be able to help take care of them and I have been through all of this before so I have some understanding of what he is going through. 

It would be really nice to have a year without any crazy shit going on though.

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Tap

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(((Huggs))) my daughter had endocarditis once. It was very scary!!!

Talk to the hospital patient advocate to see if he qualifies for medicaid. Sometimes during severe illness that prevents working, there are emergency clauses that allow someone to be eligible that normally wouldn’t be ( since they can’t work). Apply today! Sometimes getting approved any time in a month allows it to be retroactive to the beginning of the month. Laws vary by state but worth a try!! If the advocate can’t help him, call the insurance hotline and talk to a real person . Ask them to help you flll out the forms. If you can’t do that, apply anyways online. You can always appeal if it gets denied but it at least establishes an application date. 

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Ottakee

Ottakee

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1 hour ago, Tap said:

(((Huggs))) my daughter had endocarditis once. It was very scary!!!

Talk to the hospital patient advocate to see if he qualifies for medicaid. Sometimes during severe illness that prevents working, there are emergency clauses that allow someone to be eligible that normally wouldn’t be ( since they can’t work). Apply today! Sometimes getting approved any time in a month allows it to be retroactive to the beginning of the month. Laws vary by state but worth a try!! If the advocate can help him, call the insurance hotline and talk to a real person . Ask them to help you flll out the forms. If you can’t do that, apply anyways online. You can always appeal if it gets denied but it at least establishes an application date. 

Yes.  In Michigan it can go back 30 days of medical bills.  The medical social worker at the hospital can help.   And if denied, appeal.  Sometimes the first round they fail to realize that the person is eligible for an obscure form of Medicaid.  In Michigan there are over 70 different Medicaid programs and most people only know about the main few.

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Eos

Eos

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1 hour ago, Tap said:

(((Huggs))) my daughter had endocarditis once. It was very scary!!!

Talk to the hospital patient advocate to see if he qualifies for medicaid. Sometimes during severe illness that prevents working, there are emergency clauses that allow someone to be eligible that normally wouldn’t be ( since they can’t work). Apply today! Sometimes getting approved any time in a month allows it to be retroactive to the beginning of the month. Laws vary by state but worth a try!! If the advocate can help him, call the insurance hotline and talk to a real person . Ask them to help you flll out the forms. If you can’t do that, apply anyways online. You can always appeal if it gets denied but it at least establishes an application date. 

I'm so sorry this is happening, what a scary time.  I agree with Tap, apply today but also many hospitals have reduced cost programs for folks who can't pay but don't qualify for Medicaid.

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pinball

pinball

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18 hours ago, KidsHappen said:

About two weeks ago he came down with this flu that the whole family had. Then this past Sunday my dd informed us that he had been laying on the floor for ten hours straight and couldn't even get up to go to the bathroom. So we called an ambulance and he has been in the hospital ever since. 

His blood pressure is very low, he has a fever, his WBC is very high. He is in a lot of pain which they cannot adequately treat because his blood pressure is so low. He has vegetation in his heart. He is not able to walk and hasn't really been eating either. They have him on gabapentin for the pain and very strong anti-biotics. The infectious disease specialist says that he will be in the hospital for at least a few more days and will probably come home with an IV. He is meeting with a physical therapist tomorrow to work on getting him moving again. 

He is grumpy and miserable. My dd is exhausted. He doesn't have medical insurance so they are stressed about that. Luckily, they live with us so we will be able to help take care of them and I have been through all of this before so I have some understanding of what he is going through. 

It would be really nice to have a year without any crazy shit going on though.

You don’t get vegetation in your heart from the flu. It’s usually from bacteria. And young healthy people with healthy hearts do not usually get it. 
 

we literally just dealt with this with a sick elderly family friend.

 

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pinball

pinball

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4 hours ago, Grace Hopper said:

Oh my goodness how scary. So glad he went in to the hospital. 
 

Of course there’s stress wrt medical bills but I pray that things will work out in that regard and they can focus on him getting well. 

If someone has untreated vegetation in their heart, they most likely will die from it.

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Grace Hopper

Grace Hopper

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4 hours ago, pinball said:

If someone has untreated vegetation in their heart, they most likely will die from it.

As I understand it, the condition is treatable. Not a short or easy recovery, to be sure, but a younger person has a better chance of recovery than an elderly one. I will hold onto hope for this young man. 
 

fwiw a parent of mine dealt with this at age 72 and recovered. 

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KidsHappen

KidsHappen

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11 hours ago, pinball said:

You don’t get vegetation in your heart from the flu. It’s usually from bacteria. And young healthy people with healthy hearts do not usually get it. 
 

we literally just dealt with this with a sick elderly family friend.

 

From what we can tell he had the flu and he has severe asthma so he his immune system was already struggling. I don't know specifically if anything was wrong with his heart but he was not in the best of health to start with. They don't know exactly what the precipitating factor for the sepsis and vegetation were but they told us it could be bacterial or viral, as well as WBCs or other cellular debris. In any case, they seem to think that they have it pretty much under control and that he will be able to come home in a few days although he will still be on an IV. He will need PT and it will be a long recovery. Our house is really the best place for him to do that.

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pinball

pinball

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17 hours ago, pinball said:

If someone has untreated vegetation in their heart, they most likely will die from it.

 

13 hours ago, Grace Hopper said:

As I understand it, the condition is treatable. Not a short or easy recovery, to be sure, but a younger person has a better chance of recovery than an elderly one. I will hold onto hope for this young man. 
 

fwiw a parent of mine dealt with this at age 72 and recovered. 

Quoting myself, and you, so you can see how I specifically mentioned UNTREATED.

But thanks for your input

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pinball

pinball

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5 hours ago, KidsHappen said:

From what we can tell he had the flu and he has severe asthma so he his immune system was already struggling. I don't know specifically if anything was wrong with his heart but he was not in the best of health to start with. They don't know exactly what the precipitating factor for the sepsis and vegetation were but they told us it could be bacterial or viral, as well as WBCs or other cellular debris. In any case, they seem to think that they have it pretty much under control and that he will be able to come home in a few days although he will still be on an IV. He will need PT and it will be a long recovery. Our house is really the best place for him to do that.

I hope he is OK and I hope whatever  led to this never happens again.

im glad you’re providing a place for him to convalesce 

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fraidycat

fraidycat

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18 hours ago, pinball said:

If someone has untreated vegetation in their heart, they most likely will die from it.

 

49 minutes ago, pinball said:

 

Quoting myself, and you, so you can see how I specifically mentioned UNTREATED.

But thanks for your input

Why, though? What exactly was the point of your first statement that had exactly zero to do with the post you quoted wishing the young man to get well, saying nothing about not treating the condition.

Then, the poster replied that it's treatable, probably assuming that you were unaware of that fact because of your from out-of-left-field comment only for you to get snarky and defensive in response. 
 

WTF? Are you just trying to pick a fight? Go be bored and troll somewhere else.

 

Anyway, back to the OP, @KidsHappen, Wishing your SIL well on his recovery, and I hope that they are eligible for funding to cover the costs and remove that additional unneeded stress. 

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pinball

pinball

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On 9/29/2023 at 2:59 PM, Grace Hopper said:

Oh my goodness how scary. So glad he went in to the hospital. 
 

Of course there’s stress wrt medical bills but I pray that things will work out in that regard and they can focus on him getting well. 

 

18 minutes ago, fraidycat said:

 

Why, though? What exactly was the point of your first statement that had exactly zero to do with the post you quoted wishing the young man to get well, saying nothing about not treating the condition.

Then, the poster replied that it's treatable, probably assuming that you were unaware of that fact because of your from out-of-left-field comment only for you to get snarky and defensive in response. 
 

WTF? Are you just trying to pick a fight? Go be bored and troll somewhere else.

 

Anyway, back to the OP, @KidsHappen, Wishing your SIL well on his recovery, and I hope that they are eligible for funding to cover the costs and remove that additional unneeded stress. 

See bolded…

”so glad he went to the hospital” …which I quoted and replied…

”If someone has untreated vegetation in their heart, they most likely will die from it”

See the relationship…glad he went to hospital…bc if untreated, that would most likely lead to death

 😊 

 

 

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Catwoman

Catwoman

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2 hours ago, pinball said:

 

See bolded…

”so glad he went to the hospital” …which I quoted and replied…

”If someone has untreated vegetation in their heart, they most likely will die from it”

See the relationship…glad he went to hospital…bc if untreated, that would most likely lead to death

 😊 

 

 

Personally, I appreciated it that you posted the information, because I wasn't aware of it. I'm not really familiar with vegetation in the heart, and because the thread is about such a young man, I hadn't realized how deadly the situation could have become.

After reading your post, I realized how fortunate that young man was that @KidsHappen and her dd called an ambulance for him in time. I hope he will make a full recovery very soon! 

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Catwoman

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16 hours ago, Grace Hopper said:

As I understand it, the condition is treatable. Not a short or easy recovery, to be sure, but a younger person has a better chance of recovery than an elderly one. I will hold onto hope for this young man. 
 

fwiw a parent of mine dealt with this at age 72 and recovered. 

I'm glad your parent is ok! It sounds like a scary diagnosis!

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Grace Hopper

Grace Hopper

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36 minutes ago, Catwoman said:

I'm glad your parent is ok! It sounds like a scary diagnosis!

We really didn’t think the patient would make it, she was so ill at the outset. Of course there were symptoms that were brushed off for weeks, even months, she was caretaking for another and didn’t want to take time to go to the doctor until she crashed. The surgeons did a procedure that took about 9 hours, repaired/replaced two valves and cleaned up gunk. Somewhat slow but full recovery and an additional dozen years of life. 

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KidsHappen

KidsHappen

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Today they told my dd that if they were not able to clear the vegetation they would have to transfer him to the cardio wing at Vanderbilt to open his heart and clear it. They emphasized that they were not at that stage yet but they are preparing her which leads me to believe that it is not clearing as quickly as they had hoped. 

Also further information leads me to believe that the flu symptoms he had may not have been the flu at all but instead early symptoms of the vegetation and sepsis. We still have no clue how it got this in the first place. He has hashimoto's and pretty severe asthma but no problems with his heart or circulatory system nor has he had a systemic infection. 

She is pretty smart and is definitely a Googler so she probably knows enough to be worried but I am trying to keep things upbeat and it sounds like the doctors are trying to keep her from unnecessarily worrying. He has been there a week tonight and they are still saying at least a few more days but don't seem to be overly stressed so I am still hoping for the best.

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Ausmumof3

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17 hours ago, KidsHappen said:

Today they told my dd that if they were not able to clear the vegetation they would have to transfer him to the cardio wing at Vanderbilt to open his heart and clear it. They emphasized that they were not at that stage yet but they are preparing her which leads me to believe that it is not clearing as quickly as they had hoped. 

Also further information leads me to believe that the flu symptoms he had may not have been the flu at all but instead early symptoms of the vegetation and sepsis. We still have no clue how it got this in the first place. He has hashimoto's and pretty severe asthma but no problems with his heart or circulatory system nor has he had a systemic infection. 

She is pretty smart and is definitely a Googler so she probably knows enough to be worried but I am trying to keep things upbeat and it sounds like the doctors are trying to keep her from unnecessarily worrying. He has been there a week tonight and they are still saying at least a few more days but don't seem to be overly stressed so I am still hoping for the best.

I’m assuming you ruled out Covid with the flu-like symptoms? I hope that things start improving dramatically soon and they can avoid the need to take more serious action 😞 

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KidsHappen

KidsHappen

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Arrrgh!!! So yesterday he got a new lead doctor. We had just reached a comfortable place with the last one where they were managing his pain, getting him up moving around, starting food and planning to send him home in a few days. Then this new doctor came in and changed up all his meds and told him that she wants him to stay inpatient for 6 more weeks instead of coming home with an IV. He told her that was not really feasible because he doesn't have insurance and she said that they would just transfer him to a facility that doesn't require insurance. He explained that they would still have to pay for it. My dd hasn't actually talked to this doctor so all this info came through SO and we aren't sure his level of understanding so there may be a medical reason that we aren't getting. 

Since the beginning he has been has been having pain in his left lower back and hip that they thought was due to pressure from laying in the same position for so long but they recently found areas of inflammation there that may be like an abcess or infection. They said it is encapsulated so they aren't worried about it spreading but it explains why he is still having so much pain there (but why did it take them so long to find it). It would be so much more helpful if my dd could talk to the lead doctor but they make their rounds at like 6:00 in the morning and she is still sleeping here because she is still working. She is going to be there today because she is off so I am going to tell her to ask to speak to the doctor so she can find out what is going on. 

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Did they look into Medicaid? Or on the ACA website? 

Glad she can be there today, but I would want a future plan as well. Can she stay overnight so she dan be there in the morning when the doctor rounds? When dd was hospitalized, I stayed overnight on a cot and went to work from there. 
 

6 weeks? I don’t understand why he would need full hospital care for that long. Iv abx, sure. But that is manageable at home. Once they saw dds culture numbers improving she went home and they monitored her from there. Being hospitalized also increases risk of secondary infections.
 

Is he not improving? Could there be something in that abscess that is feeding the fire? I am surprised that he would have any infection looming with how heavy the abx are for endocarditis. I think I would be asking about getting that area biopsied. 
 

ugh. So much to worry about! ((( hugs to you and your family))))  Endocarditis is very, very scary.

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KidsHappen

KidsHappen

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9 minutes ago, Tap said:

Did they look into Medicaid? Or on the ACA website? 

Glad she can be there today, but I would want a future plan as well. Can she stay overnight so she dan be there in the morning when the doctor rounds? When dd was hospitalized, I stayed overnight on a cot and went to work from there. 
 

6 weeks? I don’t understand why he would need full hospital care for that long. Iv abx, sure. But that is manageable at home. Once they saw dds culture numbers improving she went home and they monitored her from there. Being hospitalized also increases risk of secondary infections.
 

Is he not improving? Could there be something in that abscess that is feeding the fire? I am surprised that he would have any infection looming with how heavy the abx are for endocarditis. I think I would be asking about getting that area biopsied. 
 

ugh. So much to worry about! ((( hugs to you and your family))))  Endocarditis is very, very scary.

I know that they talked to the social worker about cutting the payment in half and then working out a plan they could afford. Not sure what else. He definitely should look into Medicaid.

Not sure where the 6 weeks came from either. That was just out of the blue. The day before that were saying a few days. He is improving but it might have something to do with this new infection they found that I agree he should not have at this point.

Also they have him on some pretty strong IV pain meds right now and I am sure they don't want to send that home. Hopefully my dd will get some more info today.

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mominco

mominco

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Kidshappen are they saying it is bacterial endocarditis? If it is that is nothing to mess around with.I unfortunately have been a caregiver and can answer any and all questions. I also want to give your dd hope since she googled all that information,The young man in my life is doing well.Please feel free to pm. 

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City Mouse

City Mouse

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I just wanted to mention that if she can’t be present when the doctor does rounds, she can ask that the doctor call her later. She should be able to call in and as to speak to his nurse as well. (I have had to handle several hospitalization for my parents from a different state.)

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KidsHappen

KidsHappen

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So, he has been in the hospital for three weeks today. They decided to keep him at the hospital where he is at because it is the county hospital and it will be better for them financially. They put in a PICC line to better deliver his meds. He is still on pain meds but not still not enough to manage his pain because his blood pressure is still low. They started his PT and he is starting to get around a bit. They think he will still be there for a few weeks. My dd is under the impression that he will be able to go back to work a few weeks after he gets back home and I haven't broken the news to her yet that he may be unemployed for quite a bit longer than that. 

They live with us and have very few bills so we will help them out as much as possible. The problem we are running into right now is that he is not capable of managing his affairs on his own yet but no one else is legally able to so we need to talk to him about maybe getting a POA so that we can help with things. They have been asking for the social worker but she has not come by yet. He needs unemployment or disability and medicaid plus maybe food stamps if he qualifies.

My poor dd is exhausted between work, the hospital and coming home whe she can to shower and change. And she is frustrated that every time they seem like they are getting ahead something like this happens. After the last three years I can so understand and empathize. I know that they don't want to stay here forever but they could if they needed to. There is plenty of space and no conflict and we can help so that is good. As long as he comes home healthy everything will work out fine. 

ETA: Just found out he has been throwing blood clots. Not sure from where but luckily they caught them in time and now have him on a blood thinner as well. I guess I need to check and see if they have him on the leg messagers as well.

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