20
LIBIN LIFE
Making a difference
Institute recognized globally for expertise in studying, treating mysterious condition By Dawn Smith
A
busy mother of two and fulltime teacher, Kristina Sayer, 37, seems to have loads of energy. It’s hard to believe that the optimistic, outgoing wife and mom was confined to her bed with a bevy of debilitating symptoms just 18 months ago. The mysterious symptoms of extreme fatigue, headaches, chest pain, a racing heart and dizziness came on Sayer suddenly, with no obvious trigger. Concerned, she saw her doctor and received an electrocardiogram (ECG) – a standard test to check on her heart health. All of Sayer’s tests came back as normal, yet her condition worsened over the summer of 2018 with additional problems like debilitating migraines, lightheadedness and stomach problems. “I felt like my legs would go out from under me at any moment and I would go ‘splat,’” she says, adding she was in and out of emergency departments seeking the cause of her symptoms. But there was no diagnosis, merely the suggestion she might be stressed. By the end of the summer, Sayer couldn’t
keep food down. Caring for her two young children was difficult. She knew going back to her classroom was out of the question.
nervous system disorder impacting up to one per cent of the population worldwide (60,000 to 300,000 Canadians).
“At my worst, I couldn’t get out of bed. It was so debilitating and frustrating because I couldn’t do anything to fix it,” she said.
Raj helped the young mom get her condition under control. Today, Sayer is back teaching and describes her condition as “manageable.” Sayer’s POTS story is a bit unusual in that she received her diagnosis within months of her first symptoms.
Fortunately, while at the emergency department in Three Hills, a triage nurse asked if Sayer had received an ECG while standing. The test is generally performed while the patient is lying, and Sayer hadn’t had one in an upright position. The results of the ECG were immediate and dramatic. “I was upright for about two minutes and my heart rate was up to 184 beats per minute,” said Sayer. “The doctor made a few phone calls to colleagues and that’s when I first heard the term POTS (postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome). Sayer was relieved to finally receive a diagnosis and was referred to Dr. Satish Raj, MD, a Libin cardiologist and researcher who specializes in autonomic nervous system disorders like POTS. It is a relatively common autonomic
On average it takes more than five years for patients to receive a diagnosis. However, her sudden onset and debilitating conditions are similar to the stories of many POTS patients. According to Raj, who is one of just a handful of POTS clinician-researchers in Canada, symptoms of the condition vary greatly from patient to patient, but the common thread is a dysfunction of the autonomic system. When POTS patients stand up, their heart rate increases excessively, resulting in low blood pressure that leaves them feeling lightheaded and faint. The condition can impact nearly every system in the body. Besides lightheadedness, a racing heart and stomach
