Just got diagnosed with Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy

[PronounsRusty/Shackleford]

Greetings folks. I’m a 35 year old male.This is my first post - I just joined a short time ago, and in the grand scheme of things, I am a pretty new hunter. I live in Alberta and almost exclusively backpack hunt solo for deer - but have been working towards taking an elk, and moose. I’ve always enjoyed being alone, and haven’t really cared if it’s a long walk or a few trips to get animals out. I’ve never had any issues with heart rate recovery or chest pains, fainting, excessive shortness of breath, etc. I’m not the most fit, but I can move at a decent pace and am okay with 60-80ish lb packs. Never really pushed it any further than that. I also upland hunt and am not averse to a 25k step day - or more if need be.

Over the summer, I had some heart monitoring done after going for an ecg where the doctor noticed an odd wave. Nothing too crazy, but we dug deeper. Fast forward a few months and I’ve gone for all kinds of testing, only to be diagnosed with Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy. We’re still investigating, and will be going for further testing in October - but as the doctor says, it won’t show a healthy heart. We’re now looking to see how bad it is. He’s told me big game hunting is not advisable due to the heavy lifting, and hunting alone is not advisable either.

Just wondering if anyone has any experience with HCM, or knows anyone who has. Is anyone out there big game hunting with heart problems? It’s lame being told you can’t do something when you otherwise feel fine.

Would appreciate any advice or experiences on hunting with HCM.

Thanks folks. Good luck out there this season.

 

[gtriple]

Crazy, I’m just a few years younger. I’ll say a prayer for your health.

 

[PronounsRusty/Shackleford]

Crazy, I’m just a few years younger. I’ll say a prayer for your health.

I really appreciate the kind words. It’s often related to genetics - so not much can be done other than getting an ecg every now and then!

 

[Taudisio]

I had to look it up. We are close to the same age. Sorry for your diagnosis. According to my google search, I would not hesitate to continue going hunting by myself if I were in your shoes. I’m not you, so you do what you want, but we all gotta die sometime anyway.

 

[willfrye027]

Sorry to hear it man. Down in the states there are some treatment options, not sure about how things work up there. But yeah it’s something we screen for in the ER when someone has a syncope. I’ve never diagnosed it..it’s rare but it’s good you know about it because it can cause sudden death..I’d play it safe this hunting season until you’ve got some more testing and the treatment options

 

[Shooter Mike]

Ventricular Hypertrophy is common in the US and is most often the result of chronic hypertension. How HCM differs is, it's direct cause is not known. Skeletal muscle grows from the inside out. The heart though, which is a muscle, grows towards the inside, and as hypertrophy increases the amount of space in the ventricle decreases. The result of decreased capacity within the ventricles is a lower ejection fraction (EF) of blood. Normal ejection fraction is 50-70% of the volume of blood within the ventricle. Healthy stroke volume is 60-100ml's of blood. People with EF's lower than 30 can lead normal lives, but require modification in their activities. With an increase in physical exertion, there is an increase in demand for oxygenated blood. That can only come from the heart. As EF decreases, there is less oxygenated blood leaving the heart with each heart beat, so one will become fatigued more quickly and will require more recovery time. With a decreased EF, the body attempts to compensate by increasing heart rate. Stroke Volume x Heart Rate = Cardiac Output. When stroke volume is impaired, the body will do what it has to do to compensate. The catch here is, with increased rate there is a decrease in filling time (think cavitation).

Your EF will be a determining factor in what you're safe to do on your own. This is something to have long and well understood discussions with your physician about, so you understand safe limits, and have a complete understanding of how to manage. In some cases it can be well managed with medication.

 

[ZAK13]

Sorry to hear this for you. Hopefully between your doctor(s) and yourself, a plan can be created to keep you healthy and doing the things you love.