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Suggest Treatment For Sinus And Bronchitis Infections
Question: Daughter - age (17) fainted last night after walking up a flight of stairs. She is recovering from sinus and bronchitis infections still taking antibiotics. She dislocated her knee cap prior to the holidays and was inactive for most. She just started physical therapy a week ago. She started back to school Monday using a wheelchair which zapped her energy. She is having her cycle now. Friday she began to have migraines.
We think her weakened state and period caused her to faint. What medical tests should we look into?
We think her weakened state and period caused her to faint. What medical tests should we look into?
Brief Answer:
The investigations depend on the cause we are looking for
Detailed Answer:
Thanks for asking on HealthcareMagic.
There could be a number of causes behind the fainting. The tests to be done depend upon the cause we are looking for.
1. Suddenly starting to climb a flight of stairs could have caused the blood pressure to drop suddenly. It could also be linked to her weakness.
If that is the case, she needs to be kept under observation and watched for further episodes, if they occur. A Holter Monitoring or a 24 hours ECG monitoring along with periodic recording of BP may be of help.
2. There could be rhythm irregularities of the heart which could have caused sudden reduction in the blood flow to the brain and caused her to faint.
If that is the case, she needs to be kept under observation and watched for further episodes, if they occur. A Holter Monitoring or a 24 hours ECG monitoring should be of help. Other than that, a tilt table test may be required.
3. She could have had some sort of convulsion leading to the fainting.
If that is the case, she needs to be kept under observation and watched for further episodes, if they occur. An EEG Monitoring should be done to evaluate it.
4. There could be sudden drop in the blood sugar level, especially if she was in empty stomach and could have fainted due to that.
If that is the case, she needs to be kept under observation and watched for further episodes, if they occur. A periodic measurement of blood sugar may be done but might not yield much information.
5. Other than these, a complete blood count need to be done to assess for anemia.
Hope that helps.
Regards
Dr. Diptanshu Das
The investigations depend on the cause we are looking for
Detailed Answer:
Thanks for asking on HealthcareMagic.
There could be a number of causes behind the fainting. The tests to be done depend upon the cause we are looking for.
1. Suddenly starting to climb a flight of stairs could have caused the blood pressure to drop suddenly. It could also be linked to her weakness.
If that is the case, she needs to be kept under observation and watched for further episodes, if they occur. A Holter Monitoring or a 24 hours ECG monitoring along with periodic recording of BP may be of help.
2. There could be rhythm irregularities of the heart which could have caused sudden reduction in the blood flow to the brain and caused her to faint.
If that is the case, she needs to be kept under observation and watched for further episodes, if they occur. A Holter Monitoring or a 24 hours ECG monitoring should be of help. Other than that, a tilt table test may be required.
3. She could have had some sort of convulsion leading to the fainting.
If that is the case, she needs to be kept under observation and watched for further episodes, if they occur. An EEG Monitoring should be done to evaluate it.
4. There could be sudden drop in the blood sugar level, especially if she was in empty stomach and could have fainted due to that.
If that is the case, she needs to be kept under observation and watched for further episodes, if they occur. A periodic measurement of blood sugar may be done but might not yield much information.
5. Other than these, a complete blood count need to be done to assess for anemia.
Hope that helps.
Regards
Dr. Diptanshu Das
Note: For further queries related to your child health, Talk to a Pediatrician. Click here to Book a Consultation.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Vinay Bhardwaj
Answered by
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