My elderly aunt has just been taken to hospital. Over the past several months she’s developed a large paunch. She’s not a great eater, so the doctor thinks it’s due to water retention but isn’t sure. He’s sent her to hospital for investigation. Her legs are not swollen. She is taking medication to aid her circulation and her breathing.
What are they going to do to her? What would a positive result mean? She’s had it for a while so I’m not worried, but I’d like to know more. So that when I do visit and speak to the doctor I’ll understand what they’re saying and, if necessary, be able to ask pertinent questions.
Unfortunately, because it’s the U.K. NHS, I can’t just ring the doctor or the hospital.
If it is fluid retention and if it’s all in her belly, there are a couple of options. First on my list of things to rule out would be right sided heart failure. If it is that, then prognosis depends on exactly what is causing the heart failure and how advance it is.
When my grandmother had fluid retention, they gave her pills - diuretics, I presume - to make her pee all the time and get rid of the excess fluid.
Watch out that they don’t do it too fast though. We never did an official autopsy, but we suspect that when my grandmother passed away a few days after starting the pills, losing that much water as fast as she did put too much of a strain on her heart.
IANAD, just sharing an anecdote, don’t panic, etc.
Quite; I’m not about to post her medical history. There are doctors looking after her, and I have confidence in their ability. The questions you’ve suggested seem obvious but the obvious is often missed, and best if explicitly stated.
My mother died from exactly this, compounded by other problems. The diuretic caused her blood pressure to drop, causing a whole domino effect, eventually affecting her heart. Just make sure there’s always a professional paying attention to her vitals. And good luck.
Causes of a swollen abdomen include fat, fluid, enlarged internal organs and assorted masses including both benign and malignant tumors. In general right-sided heart failure causes accumulation of fluid in the legs before it causes obvious ascites (free fluid in the abdominal space), but not necessarily.
It’s too broad a differential.
Kidney and liver function will be checked with lab and urine studies. Cardiac function will be checked with labs, EKG, chest xray and perhaps an echocardiogram (ultrasound of the heart). The abdomen itself can be imaged most easily with ultrasound and CT; perhaps an MRI. Any of these should determine if fat, fluid, organomegaly or tumor is an underlying cause.
Only when the cause of the enlarging belly is established will any followup questions make any real sense to ask. For instance, if it’s fluid, there is a whole differential diagnosis for causes of ascites…