A week ago today, Thursday January 1, 2015, I started having this strange sensation in my center chest, approximately 2” above the base of my breastbone and ½” to the left.

The sensation begins behind my breastbone with a pressuring up, inflating feeling in an area covering about 1 ½”. It is completely bearable and only very slightly painful. It always follows with my heart feeling like it has lunged and flip-flopped followed by a 3 or 4 second episode of erratic palpitations, and then tapers from an in rythym thumping to a normal feeling heartbeat.

Last Saturday evening I went to the ER explaining the symptoms, and that the frequency and intensity of these episode were increasing. After an ECG and bloodwork came back indicating that I had not had, nor was having a heart attack, they sent me home saying pick up a bottle of Maalox, and that it was probably just acid reflux.

Now it’s been a week. The only thig that has changed it the episodes are more frequent and a little more intense and painful.

My History: 3 years ago I was hospitalized with a blood clot in my groin, during which time they did a chemically induced stress test, and then an angiogram – saying everything was “crystal clear” I since had a cellulitis episode which resulted in 4 days of Vancomycin and clindamycin, during which they performed an echocardiogram and revealed that I had what the doctor called a basically non-threatening case of diastolic heart failure.

I am taking medication for diabetes, hypertension, allergies, and buspar daily and occasionally xanax for anxiety (twice monthly maybe). I also take hydrocodone, tramadol and gabapentin for bad knees and RLS respectively.

I don’t know what’s going on inside my chest, but do believe the ER folks missed it.

I do have a molar that is abscessed that the dentist said would have to come out prior to having my intended TKR surgery. It does not ache but has recently become swollen and painful to touch – actually just about the same time my cardio symptoms presented themselves.

What do I do now/next?