"There were no elevated cardiac enzymes. The EKG was normal and showed NSR".
Pretty bold and uniformed statement here. The paramedics who responded reported that the patient, Terri was in arrest. They undoubtedly used their EKG. The emergency room physicians diagnosed cardiac arrest. Further, it has been reported that this arrest deprived Terri's brain of oxygen for as much as 10 minutes. Significant brain damage can occurr in as little as 4. Your statement that she had no elevated cardiac enzymes, the EKG was normal and that the heart was in normal sinus rhythm certainly is misleading to say the least. Are you saying that the physicians in the receiving ER who diagnosed cardiac arrest did so with a normal EKG?? And a heart that is diagnosed as arrested has an NSR??? Maybe they were inept and not familiar with cardiac function- though they were on staff at the Cardiac Institute??? Not bleedin' likely!
Or are you trying to say the paramedics and the entire ER staff, doctors, the RN's, LPN's and tech's were somehow ALL conspirators to some misdeed of Michael Schiavo's??? Right!!
"As I said, a low K will not cause a cardiac crisis if the individual has a healthy heart without cardiac HX.
'I do not dispute your contention K is essential to cardiac functioning".
That is an amusing statement. You agree that potassium is essential to cardiac functioning, immediately after asserting that low potassiun will not cause a cardiac crisis. Again, where in the world did you go to nursing school. Low potassium is a universally accepted cause of heart arrhythmias and the resultant unchecked arrhythmias can lead to cardiac arrest. And further, low serum potassium has long been associated with ventricular fibrillation which, even though technically the heart is beating, deprives the brain of oxygen the entire time the fibrillation is occurring. Though NSR can be restored, the brain still suffers from anoxia.
"If you are bolused with IV solution, D5W, say a liter in 15 minutes, or less, what are the effects to your blood sugar, thus K? DUH".
DUH- this is the brightest thing you said in your response. Re-read your statement in your original post. Dilute the K??? OH GOD- spare your patients.
"The K was not low to begin with. Where do you get this notion?"
You are new, aren't you. That has been stated all over this forum and several discussions of this are included in the court records. The diagnosis of low serum potassium was made by the treating physicians at the Cardiac Center the night of the event. Oh, I forgot, they are a part of this vast conspiracy to kill Terri, together with twenty judges, a number of your fellow RN's and other assorted medical professionals. HAH!
"The doc stated the girl had no heart attack".
I assume you are referring to Hammesfahr, who saw her more than ten years after the event. That notwithstanding, I agree that she didn't have a heart attack (MI), she suffered a cardiac arrest as a result of low serum potassium.
"The chem panels, liver, etc were all WNL."
Have to take your word for this, but what's the relevance?? I've done a lot of reading of the record on this case, however I have never come across any discussion of the "chem panels". Perhaps you will provide your cite.
"What is of interest is the anoxia/hypoxia which lead to O2 deprivation. And as we later found out, the extensive fractures."
The anoxia/hypoxia question has been addressed and answered by the attending physicians and associated staff. As to the fractures, Are you trying to tell me that Michael Schiavo gave this 110 pound, 5'6" woman a beating that broke both ankles, both knees, several ribs, her sacroiliac, her femur, several vertibrae in her neck and fractured her skull in several places all without leaving a mark?? Tin foil hat time!!
Imagine! Applying enough pressure to fracture several vertibrae in her neck but not fracture her hyoid bone or damage her larnyx.
I suggest that you reveiw osteoporis and bulemia. Women who suffer from osteoporosis can and do lose as much as 30% of their bone density in a single year. Did you ever consider that the small and minor fractures (if there are any) and the resultant "hot spots" revealed by the bone scan are a result of osteoporosis? Compression fractures such as the femur (again, if there was a fracture) are common in an individual suffering from osteoporosis.
The only one who seems to know less is you.
BUMP
Thanks for posting that. Maybe a disclaimer is needed? :^)
"Warning: Information contained in this post may be hazardous to certain individuals who may be sensitive to light."
