Yesterday's visit with cardio left me unsettled. I had an annual Doppler carotid scan. When asked doc specific #'s for each result, he replied "Normal" and said since it was same as last scan, we'd skip a year before next Doppler. He seemed rushed and abrupt and so I didn't press.

His nurse practitioner had done the ortho test of b.p. lying, sitting, standing and the gap bet. standing and sitting was 25 pt drop. N.P. suggested a calcium heart test when doc came in. Doc said, we know the patient has hardening of the arteries so that won't be necessary.

Doc told me last visit that I could "self-regulate" my med with big b.p. drops but I failed to ask more specifically. My primary question for this visit was at what systolic reading do I stop amlodopine 5mg with ortho drop and at what reading do I resume taking the med. My second question was what b.p. was I aiming for. I had taken diary of b.p. readings over past mos for him to note the frequent drops in b.p. He asked "how" I take readings: 1st thing in morning and sitting at my breakfast bar. Then asked if I needed to take it standing because he'd said if gap was 20pt diff on sys. bet. sitting and standing it was ortho..which I already knew. He said no to my question about standing but didn't answer my questions.

Told him since last annual had been diag. with both CKD Stage 3 and acute Diverticulitis episode and had learned impt of regulating b.p. with CKD. He made no comment and left saying I'll see you in a year. I am troubled, feeling discounted and that because I am 76 yrs with other chronic conditions, he had no interest in helping. Am I overreacting?

Have others here with ortho hypo been advised about when to stop and then resume taking b.p. meds following large drops in b.p.?

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