The mystery begins

In my pre-op physical on November 5, my hemoglobin was first noticed as low and my breathing had become more labored. My doctor prescribed an Advair inhaler, thinking maybe I was getting asthma. During the week, I also developed lump in my lower abdomen. On Friday, November 12, the lump coupled with even more labored breathing resulted in my admittance to the hospital for tests.

That evening in the hospital, I was given a complete torso CT scan plus blood tests. The CT scan was difficult because I could not hold my breath long enough. Initial feedback was a spot on my lung, which later was determined from a second CT scan to be a blood clot (pulmonary embolism). The lump was just an ingrown hair (pseudofolliculitis), which was lanced and cleared up quickly. I went through EKGs, echocardiograms, ultrasound on legs and many blood tests. Blood tests finally discovered a lupus anticoagulant inhibitor and diagnosis of antiphospholipid syndrome (APS), also known as Hughes Syndrome. I was treated with heparin in the hospital from the first day and went home on the November 19th with a Lovenox heparin injection and a Coumadin blood thinner prescription. I also had oxygen at home for couple of weeks, but started work half time on December 1 and full-time on December 13th. My hemoglobin level was about 10.5 and platelets about 600 during this time.