09-30-2019, 09:26 AM
The CT scan of the noggin went well. My doc left me a message that all was normal with the brain, while noting a thinning of the left parietal bone from a past injury or congenital. Not certain whether she or the lab made that misinterpretation. In fact it's the overlying skin that's thin. That's where I had a plug of tissue cut out due to basal cell carcinoma, and to fill in the 1"-diameter hole the surgeon made pinwheel cuts outward, drew in the surrounding scalp, and stapled it all together. So I have a depression there. Anyway, the noggins okay -- organically.
Urine test okay, fecal okay, blood tests okay with one caveat. And yes, my doc remains focused on my unintentional weight loss. Looking it up on the web, I see why. Unintentional weight loss in the elderly (and yes, at 68 I'm 3 years into that category) is associated with "increased morbidity and mortality." A 5% weight loss in 6 months or less is a trigger for concern. I managed a 10% weight loss.
So ... the caveat with the blood test. While my B12 is in the normal range, it's near the low end. The doc had asked me if I was vegetarian, which I'm not (I'm still dragging down kills). Still, she wants me to take B12 supplements. So I did some reading on the web, just to gauge my level of ignorance -- which is considerable. You can only get B12 through meat, eggs, milk -- essentially animal products. Vegetarians need to intake B12-enriched "veggies" or take a B12 supplement. DM no doubt is more knowledgeable on this subject. Anyway, the elderly, of which I am one (in case you forgot), don't absorb B12 very well and often need a supplement. While not vegetarian, LCF and I have been reducing our meat intake of late, as it's the healthy thing to do (so we thought). On top of that, for the past couple of months we've had fresh tomatoes from the garden, meaning lots of bruschetta lunches and vegetarian chili dinners and even less meat than ever.
So, yeah. A B12 deficiency could explain some stuff. It can impair/damage the nervous system, cause imbalance, clumsiness, vision problems. Possibly lead to weight loss. Though I haven't had tingling in the extremities or a fast pulse (my resting pulse is 59!), which are among the most common symptoms. Anyway, I'm bringing down more kills now, and about to start B12 pills.
As for the root canal redo, that got finalized on Saturday. I asked some questions this time, something I'm very bad at. Why does my gum remain swollen? Well, because of the large infection in my jaw. From my understanding, it is now sealed into the bone so it can't go anywhere new, and it will take some time for the bone to repair itself (and the infection to fully die), so the swelling of the gum will take some time to go away. What I suspect is that I've had that infection, more or less, since the original root canal almost three years ago (!!!).
That infection couldn't have helped my health.
Anyway, that's my state of health in much more than a nutshell. Sorry for the ramble.
Urine test okay, fecal okay, blood tests okay with one caveat. And yes, my doc remains focused on my unintentional weight loss. Looking it up on the web, I see why. Unintentional weight loss in the elderly (and yes, at 68 I'm 3 years into that category) is associated with "increased morbidity and mortality." A 5% weight loss in 6 months or less is a trigger for concern. I managed a 10% weight loss.
So ... the caveat with the blood test. While my B12 is in the normal range, it's near the low end. The doc had asked me if I was vegetarian, which I'm not (I'm still dragging down kills). Still, she wants me to take B12 supplements. So I did some reading on the web, just to gauge my level of ignorance -- which is considerable. You can only get B12 through meat, eggs, milk -- essentially animal products. Vegetarians need to intake B12-enriched "veggies" or take a B12 supplement. DM no doubt is more knowledgeable on this subject. Anyway, the elderly, of which I am one (in case you forgot), don't absorb B12 very well and often need a supplement. While not vegetarian, LCF and I have been reducing our meat intake of late, as it's the healthy thing to do (so we thought). On top of that, for the past couple of months we've had fresh tomatoes from the garden, meaning lots of bruschetta lunches and vegetarian chili dinners and even less meat than ever.
So, yeah. A B12 deficiency could explain some stuff. It can impair/damage the nervous system, cause imbalance, clumsiness, vision problems. Possibly lead to weight loss. Though I haven't had tingling in the extremities or a fast pulse (my resting pulse is 59!), which are among the most common symptoms. Anyway, I'm bringing down more kills now, and about to start B12 pills.
As for the root canal redo, that got finalized on Saturday. I asked some questions this time, something I'm very bad at. Why does my gum remain swollen? Well, because of the large infection in my jaw. From my understanding, it is now sealed into the bone so it can't go anywhere new, and it will take some time for the bone to repair itself (and the infection to fully die), so the swelling of the gum will take some time to go away. What I suspect is that I've had that infection, more or less, since the original root canal almost three years ago (!!!).
That infection couldn't have helped my health.
Anyway, that's my state of health in much more than a nutshell. Sorry for the ramble.