failed medical....

[csw1000]

I went for my first medical the other day and my blood pressure was through the roof. "White coat syndrome" I think. I am a little over weight, about 20#, and my bp usually runs @ 140/90 or so. At the physical I was 160/110 initially and after trying my best to relax I still only managed a 150/ 100. My AME said that if I could contact my normal DR. and bring him a signed print-out of my bp history over the last 6 months he would include the info with my application and the FAA may accept it. Well the highest I showed since last September was 140/100 one time. I had two other readings at 140/90, one 140/88 and a couple at @ 136/84. BP aside, I did fine on all other parts of the exam. Does anyone have a guess as to what may happen? I can barely sleep. I am just starting my training and probably won't solo until early Fall, if I do fail can I re-test by then? Any advise is appreciated, and yes, I have started a diet. Also, I work construction so I am fairly active already.

[67november]

EASY lose the 20#'s, my BP was very high also 157/112 something like that, I lost 30#'s and my BP is now 114/76

 

see my thread "pilot Health" in the general forum

[slick1537]

My recommendation would be to stop training until you can get your medical. I would not gamble thousands of training dollars with that possibility of failing my medical.

[RkyMtnHI]

hmmmm, how is it that you have so many accounts of your bp over the past few months?

 

dp

[Karl]

I'm on lisinopril 20mg. The AOPA drug chart said it should be OK but I haven't gone for a medical.

Karl

I should mention. I'm a bit overweight and I lost 10 lbs from this weight my BP dropped 10-15 points.

Now I'm off to do evil aerobic exercise to accomplish just that.

Karl

Edited February 6, 2010 by Karl

[Karl]

I just saw this in AOPA e brief.

 

AOPA helps with medical

I'm going to post this in the other thread on medicals also.

 

Karl

[RkyMtnHI]

I'm on lisinopril 20mg. The AOPA drug chart said it should be OK but I haven't gone for a medical.

Karl

I should mention. I'm a bit overweight and I lost 10 lbs from this weight my BP dropped 10-15 points.

Now I'm off to do evil aerobic exercise to accomplish just that.

Karl

 

 

Makes sense.. keep up the good work Karl.. i've lost 50, and my main motivating force was that i wanted to pass that physical..

 

as i have said before: if you want it bad enough, you can make it happen.

 

dp

[spencer]

One question. Did the examiner submit the high blood pressure information to the FAA, or did he say figure out what you want to do and get back to me? If he didn't submit anything then you technically didn't fail your medical. The faa's limit is 155/95. Anything higher then that they will deferral the medical. The examiner can deferral it for lower values but usually depends on other conditions. Is your AME a senior AME? The senior AME's generally have a better understanding of special conditions. I hate to say it but the easiest response to this problem is to loose the 20#. Think of it this way. The amount of time the FAA is going to take to approve your medical you could drop that 20#. No kidding. They are going to take a minimum of a month if your doctor deferrals it but probably closer to 3 months because they are backed up in the medical division in Oklahoma city. Now there is one more way to do it. If you don't loose the weight you can be put on hypertension medication that is approved by the FAA. Your doctor will have to monitor your side effects and so on and write a letter to the faa stating that you have no side effects and that your high blood pressure symptoms have improved while taking the medication and your no more likely to become suddenly incapacitated while flying then anybody else on the street. Once you have this information you would go to the AME and try to obtain a medical. The medical would be a special issuance medical and the first time you try to get it the AME has to deferral it to the FAA. Once the faa approves it you can get the medical. As stated this could take months. Now there are a few amount of AME's out there that personally know somebody down in Oklahoma city and you can get the medical approved right then and there but this is rare. So obviously the easiest way to overcome this is trying to do it without medication. Let me tell you a little about my issue. I am in my 20's. Have always been healthy, don't smoke or do anything bad. I run close to two miles a day and am in shape. I suddenly came down with a thyroid disease and have gone all through the medical hoops the faa has to offer. If i had control over the situation i would take it. For example if it is something i could fix by loosing weight i would be extremely happy but it is not. So keep your head up. Drop them pounds or just stay positive if you have to go the other way with medication.Below is an excerpt from flightphysical.com. Hopefully this helped and let me know if you have anymore questions.

 

Aerospace Medical Disposition

If an individual with no known history of hypertension is found during the FAA exam to have blood pressure readings consistently higher than 155/95 then further investigation is required. Initially, this should consist of recording the blood pressure twice a day (morning and evening) for three consecutive days. If at least 4 of these 6 readings are 155/95 or less and the applicant is otherwise qualified, then no further action is required and the certificate can be issued.

 

If the three-day blood pressure checks confirm the presence of hypertension, then treatment of some kind will generally be required for certification. Once a person is on a stable treatment plan and their blood pressure is adequately controlled without significant adverse effects, certification can be considered. When the FAA is notified for the first time about an aviator who has initiated treatment for high blood pressure, the following items will need to be reviewed and cleared by an Aviation Medical Examiner (AME):

 

1. Complete review of pertinent history including personal, social, and family history related to hypertension and risk factor analysis for complications;

2. Statement from treating physician describing the effects of treatment and any risk factor modification program;

3. Representative blood pressure readings;

4. Laboratory testing to include electrolyte, lipid profile, and glucose;

5. Resting ECG.

 

If the above is acceptable, the AME may issue the medical certificate, good for its normal duration.

 

For an individual who has already reported the hypertension and received an initial clearance, the follow-up requirements at the next and subsequent FAA medical exams are very simple. All that is required is a statement from the treating physician that the individual is in good health and having no blood pressure related problems and including some sample blood pressure readings.

 

 

 

 

Blood Pressure Optimal Normal High Normal Hypertension FAA Limit

Systolic (top #) <120 <130 130-139 140 or higher 155 or higher

Diastolic < 80 85 85-90 90 or higher 95 or higher

[csw1000]

Working on the weight thing now, had several delicious carrots and some rice yesterday. Today I make a move on some salad and plain turkey. RkyMtnHI, the reason I have been to the doctor several times in the last few months is because I got pneumonia in November and the first round of antibiotics did not work completely and it came back a couple weeks later. Between the initial visit and subsequent follow up visits is how I have the history. I am fine now.