Question

Mahmoud, 53, finally visited his doctor, after 6 months of being winded after climbing the two flights of stairs to his apartment. He kept blaming himself for being "out of shape," and thought he would be OK after his spring yard work started, but he wasn't. The doctor wasn't surprised when Mahmoud's blood pressure was 160/110 mm Hg. The doctor prescribed some beta blockers and more tests, including an ECG and blood tests. Why did the doctor want this additional information? What are some items he would check in the blood tests, and why?

Answer 1

#. The doctor wanted the additional information to rule out the cause of his obesity and the effects of his obesity on the organs .

Blood tests may include a cholesterol test, liver function tests, a fasting glucose, a thyroid test and others to rule out cause.

To rule out the cardiovascular health status the physician has prescribed for ECG.

Common cardiovascular problems for obese patients :-

arrhythmias

right heart failure

hypertension

coronary artery disease

congestive heart failure

#. Cardiac output is increased to perfuse all the extra adipose tissue, this puts extra stress on the heart and it leads to cardiac hypertrophy .