Help Linda with her medical expenses
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On Sunday, February 10th, Linda suffered a stroke and was taken to St. Patrick hospital where she was quickly treated with tPA, a powerful clot-busting medication used to dissolve the clot and restore blood flow. The drug must be given within a few hours after the onset of symptoms, or the risk of causing unwanted bleeding may outweigh the benefit. The earlier tPA is administered within that time period, the better the chances of a favorable outcome. We are so grateful that she was treated extremely early after her symptoms began and she is expected to make a full recovery. After three days in the ICU and one night on the neurology floor, she was able to come with the aid of in-home health care. Her prognosis is better at home than in a nursing home. When she can manage the stairs to her home, she will continue with out-patient rehab. Friends have generously joined with Linda’s children and given their time to check on her, take her to hospital appointments and just keep her spirits up so she’s not feeling alone. She is currently trying to regain movement in her left arm, leg and her speech.
Linda’s medical challenges started in October when she began to experience critical stage hypertension that couldn’t be controlled by medications. Her primary care physician ordered a test of her renal arteries to see if a blockage could be the cause. They suspected a right renal artery stenosis, but in the course of testing, they also discovered a small mass on her pancreas and ongoing MRI’s will be required to determine if the mass grows. We’ll cross that road when we come to it. Her first pancreas MRI is on February 28th.
Surgery was performed on her renal artery and a heart catheter was also done at the Heart Institute. The results of the renal artery was a 90% blockage and the diagnosis of Fibromuscular Dysplasia which is the abnormal development or growth of cells in the walls of the body’s arteries. As a result of this growth, areas of the arteries can thicken, narrow and even enlarge, making it difficult for blood to flow through them. FMD most often affects the renal arteries, which supply the kidneys with blood, and carotid arteries, which bring blood to the brain. Less commonly, FMD develops in the arteries of the abdomen or the arteries of the arms and legs. In nearly one-third of people with FMD, more than one artery is affected. So we don’t know what the future holds with this. The disease is very rare, affecting 1-3% of the population. It is not curable or treatable with medication. Linda will always require frequent testing in her arteries.
Although the cardiologist said her heart looked great after the surgery, at her post surgery check-up, she was told they had discovered a Miocardial Bridge, a segment of her heart's main arteries tunnels into the heart muscle and back out again instead of resting on the surface of the heart. The bridge refers to the band of heart muscle, the myocardium. that stretches over that section of the artery. In Linda’s case, it’s her left anterior descending artery. You may know this one by the “widow-maker” in heart attacks. A myocardial bridge shows up in fewer than 5% of people who undergo a cardiac catheterization. Most people with this condition, which is generally present from birth, don't have any symptoms. But the segment of the blood vessel that dips into the heart muscle may be squeezed when the heart contracts, especially if the heart muscle is thickened. In rare cases, this causes symptoms similar to those of a heart attack, including chest pain, tightness or pressure in the chest, pain in the left arm or jaw, or shortness of breath. Those symptoms have been present for Linda since a “heart attack” in 2006, however, the cause was not known until now.
As you can see, there’s a long, winding, confusing medical road to navigate. Linda is self employed and has medical insurance with a high deductible and out of pocket costs. Unfortunately, the road behind her for the last 6 months exceeded 2018 and 2019 out of pocket costs. As you can imagine, her medical costs so far run in the tens of thousands, and we are extremely thankful for insurance. But not working, paying higher employees costs for the business and out of pocket expenses are crippling on top of everything else she is dealing with.
We are hoping to be able to raise funds to help with those out of pocket expenses for her medical care. We deeply appreciate the generous support Linda has received and extremely dislike asking for monetary help, but sometimes we have to stop being proud and just ask. Anything you can give is greatly appreciated and we know it will help Linda concentrate on her recovery and not on the bills that are piling up. If you can’t give (completely and totally understandable!!), please keep Linda in your prayers as she continues her recovery.
With love and gratitude,
The Baumann/Pfaff Family
Linda’s medical challenges started in October when she began to experience critical stage hypertension that couldn’t be controlled by medications. Her primary care physician ordered a test of her renal arteries to see if a blockage could be the cause. They suspected a right renal artery stenosis, but in the course of testing, they also discovered a small mass on her pancreas and ongoing MRI’s will be required to determine if the mass grows. We’ll cross that road when we come to it. Her first pancreas MRI is on February 28th.
Surgery was performed on her renal artery and a heart catheter was also done at the Heart Institute. The results of the renal artery was a 90% blockage and the diagnosis of Fibromuscular Dysplasia which is the abnormal development or growth of cells in the walls of the body’s arteries. As a result of this growth, areas of the arteries can thicken, narrow and even enlarge, making it difficult for blood to flow through them. FMD most often affects the renal arteries, which supply the kidneys with blood, and carotid arteries, which bring blood to the brain. Less commonly, FMD develops in the arteries of the abdomen or the arteries of the arms and legs. In nearly one-third of people with FMD, more than one artery is affected. So we don’t know what the future holds with this. The disease is very rare, affecting 1-3% of the population. It is not curable or treatable with medication. Linda will always require frequent testing in her arteries.
Although the cardiologist said her heart looked great after the surgery, at her post surgery check-up, she was told they had discovered a Miocardial Bridge, a segment of her heart's main arteries tunnels into the heart muscle and back out again instead of resting on the surface of the heart. The bridge refers to the band of heart muscle, the myocardium. that stretches over that section of the artery. In Linda’s case, it’s her left anterior descending artery. You may know this one by the “widow-maker” in heart attacks. A myocardial bridge shows up in fewer than 5% of people who undergo a cardiac catheterization. Most people with this condition, which is generally present from birth, don't have any symptoms. But the segment of the blood vessel that dips into the heart muscle may be squeezed when the heart contracts, especially if the heart muscle is thickened. In rare cases, this causes symptoms similar to those of a heart attack, including chest pain, tightness or pressure in the chest, pain in the left arm or jaw, or shortness of breath. Those symptoms have been present for Linda since a “heart attack” in 2006, however, the cause was not known until now.
As you can see, there’s a long, winding, confusing medical road to navigate. Linda is self employed and has medical insurance with a high deductible and out of pocket costs. Unfortunately, the road behind her for the last 6 months exceeded 2018 and 2019 out of pocket costs. As you can imagine, her medical costs so far run in the tens of thousands, and we are extremely thankful for insurance. But not working, paying higher employees costs for the business and out of pocket expenses are crippling on top of everything else she is dealing with.
We are hoping to be able to raise funds to help with those out of pocket expenses for her medical care. We deeply appreciate the generous support Linda has received and extremely dislike asking for monetary help, but sometimes we have to stop being proud and just ask. Anything you can give is greatly appreciated and we know it will help Linda concentrate on her recovery and not on the bills that are piling up. If you can’t give (completely and totally understandable!!), please keep Linda in your prayers as she continues her recovery.
With love and gratitude,
The Baumann/Pfaff Family
Organizer and beneficiary
Megan Pfaff
Organizer
Missoula, MT
Linda Baumann
Beneficiary