SquashedFrog Posted February 14, 2008 Share Posted February 14, 2008 after a month of wondering how our friend passed away, her parents finally received the death certificate and medical records this week. natalie's official cause of death was viral myocarditis, a virus triggered by the flu that she had. it basically attacks the lining of the heart. if you google the term, there is more information on the internet about viral myocarditis. it is now clear and apparent that the hospital did not give natalie the proper care while she was there. many of us suspected this, but to have it confirmed is very painful and sad . her family will be looking into this further for more answers. sorry to be the bearer of sad news. I believe this is what Gary Louris had a few years back that put him in the hospital. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Edie Posted February 15, 2008 Share Posted February 15, 2008 Bob Dylan had something similar that almost killed him ten years ago. Link Such a shame that Nat's illness wasn't correctly diagnosed. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Mighty Mel Posted February 17, 2008 Share Posted February 17, 2008 Thanks for the news on this. I had been wondering about this in recent days, since there seems no logical reason (there are plenty of illogical ones of course) for someone so young to have passed away after receiving medical attention. I know this is tacky, but someone needs to sue. If she had that serious an illness and was not admitted for long term care, that is really dreadful. LouieB The family is obtaining second opinions on the medical records, however, it does appear that viral myocarditis is hard to detect. Apparently you can stabalize it if it's caught early on, but there is no treatment for chronic viral myocarditis. I've also read that sudden death is a common symptom. So even though we wish she could have stayed in the hospital longer (and I would feel better if she had), I'm not sure if it would have helped or not, sadly. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Saut Crapaud Posted February 17, 2008 Share Posted February 17, 2008 What a sad, sad story. She certainly seems to have touched many people here and abroad. I am an emergency physician and this is truly a nightmare case. viral myocarditis is a difficult diagnosis to make especially in the er. patients often present with non specific symptoms of fever and malaise. usually they will have some component of chest pain or shortness of breath, this leads to ordering an ekg, and sometimes some abnormal findings on said ekg. often the abmormal ekg will lead to ordering a series of cardiac markers which are often elevated and that would prompt admission to the hospital. i don't claim to know any of the merits of her case nor her presentation to the hospital. the family is certainly within their rights and i would encourage them to pursue whether or not she received appropriate care. even if they don't desire monetary compensation, her family needs to address the medical community where she is from and make them aware of the failed system and her missed diagnosis. tragedies like this need to be discussed and debated, it's the only way to change the system. i take care of about 6,000 patients a year and reading about the loss of such a wonderful person in the prime of her life is very sobering and a reminder that each of my patients belong to families and communities who love them very much. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Mighty Mel Posted February 17, 2008 Share Posted February 17, 2008 What a sad, sad story. She certainly seems to have touched many people here and abroad. I am an emergency physician and this is truly a nightmare case. viral myocarditis is a difficult diagnosis to make especially in the er. patients often present with non specific symptoms of fever and malaise. usually they will have some component of chest pain or shortness of breath, this leads to ordering an ekg, and sometimes some abnormal findings on said ekg. often the abmormal ekg will lead to ordering a series of cardiac markers which are often elevated and that would prompt admission to the hospital. i don't claim to know any of the merits of her case nor her presentation to the hospital. the family is certainly within their rights and i would encourage them to pursue whether or not she received appropriate care. even if they don't desire monetary compensation, her family needs to address the medical community where she is from and make them aware of the failed system and her missed diagnosis. tragedies like this need to be discussed and debated, it's the only way to change the system. i take care of about 6,000 patients a year and reading about the loss of such a wonderful person in the prime of her life is very sobering and a reminder that each of my patients belong to families and communities who love them very much. I agree with your post and I can assure you that her family is definitely looking into whether or not she received appropriate care, and they are in the process of obtaining more information about her medical and autopsy records. They are also having other doctors look at this information for second opinions. Obviously it was a missed diagnosis (the hospital sent her home), which is why they are looking into this further. It's just so unfortunate that this was so hard to diagnose. I've also heard (correct me if I am wrong) that there is a not a treatment for chronic viral myocarditis. Thanks for your input - it's nice to hear another professional opinion. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Saut Crapaud Posted February 17, 2008 Share Posted February 17, 2008 I agree with your post and I can assure you that her family is definitely looking into whether or not she received appropriate care, and they are in the process of obtaining more information about her medical and autopsy records. They are also having other doctors look at this information for second opinions. Obviously it was a missed diagnosis (the hospital sent her home), which is why they are looking into this further. It's just so unfortunate that this was so hard to diagnose. I've also heard (correct me if I am wrong) that there is a not a treatment for chronic viral myocarditis. Thanks for your input - it's nice to hear another professional opinion.i'm not aware of antiviral therapy for viral myocarditis. if people develop heart failure from the infection then there are medicines to treat this. i would have to consult my buddy who is an infectious disease specialist for specific antiviral therapy. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sandoz Posted February 18, 2008 Share Posted February 18, 2008 i am an ID specialist (pediatric), actually, here in portland. if influenza a or b was diagnosed early, then there is an antiviral for that. i have also treated pts with steroids and/or IV gamma globulin, but neither are considered "standard of care" for viral myocarditis. it is definitely not the easiest disease to diagnose, especially early in the illness... and pts can get sick very quickly from this disease. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Mighty Mel Posted February 18, 2008 Share Posted February 18, 2008 interesting, thanks for your input. from everything i've read, it sounds like viral myocarditis mimics the symptoms of so many other illnesses (like a common viral infection), which is why it makes it so difficult to diagnose. i've read so many sad stories on the internet about young people passing away suddenly from viral myocarditis, some even died 30 minutes after arriving at the hospital. still, i wonder if she was kept a few more hours, if they would have detected a new symptom. although i do not know the exact time of her death, she did pass away the same day she was released. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
wilcogirl Posted February 18, 2008 Share Posted February 18, 2008 Wow. I'm not on here as often as I would like lately, and I only just saw this thread just now. I am truly shocked and saddened to read of Natalie's passing. I never had the pleasure of meeting her in person, but she was one of the first people I chatted with when I joined here. Among other things, we discussed her midwifery studies, as I had delivered both my daughters with a midwife, and I was cheering her on. Wow. How terribly sad. I guess I just wanted to add my voice to the huge list of people she touched. For all of you who knew her well, I am so sorry to hear this news, I know it is a huge loss for you. Shannon Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Dreamin' Posted March 22, 2008 Share Posted March 22, 2008 Every once in awhile, I come across something that I would have loved to share with Nat. I think I'll post them here instead for your enjoyment. Bonfire of the Princesses Quote Link to post Share on other sites
kidsmoke Posted March 22, 2008 Share Posted March 22, 2008 Every once in awhile, I come across something that I would have loved to share with Nat. I think I'll post them here instead for your enjoyment. Bonfire of the Princesses Thank you, Judy, I enjoyed that tremendously, as I know Nat would have. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
the carlos Posted April 21, 2008 Share Posted April 21, 2008 One of natalie's favorite bands, The Minders decided to call it quits last week. It made me think of her. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Tweedy's Gurl Posted April 22, 2008 Share Posted April 22, 2008 i played her cover of 'california stars' on the radio this afternoon. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
kidsmoke Posted April 23, 2008 Share Posted April 23, 2008 Ah, that's so neat! She lives on! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Mighty Mel Posted April 23, 2008 Share Posted April 23, 2008 One of natalie's favorite bands, The Minders decided to call it quits last week. It made me think of her. yeah, i can't help but think how sad natalie would be about this news. martyn was at her memorial and he informed us that they were breaking up. sad indeed. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ajarwithaheavylid Posted April 26, 2008 Share Posted April 26, 2008 Um, wow. I've been away from the board for a really long time, and even when I was here, I was mostly a lurker. Still, reading about Nat's death is stunning. I always enjoyed her posts, the Sentient Action Figures, and her outlook on life. My thoughts and prayers go out to those of you who were close to here, and hope you've found peace. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
legalsandwichmaneuver Posted May 6, 2008 Share Posted May 6, 2008 Wow, it's been a looooooong time since I've checked in here. This is terrible news. I'm shocked just like everyone else. I just sat and read through this whole thread. St. G will be missed for sure.I will always remember her radio show and her turning me on to Jim O'Rourke Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Mighty Mel Posted June 2, 2008 Share Posted June 2, 2008 listening to summerteeth today and thinking of nat. she always told me that this album saved her life. if she were here today, we would both be feeling giddy about the upcoming spoon show next week. she was going to be my spoon buddy again. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LouieB Posted June 20, 2008 Share Posted June 20, 2008 Before I met Natalie I never gave Jim O'Rourke's music much thought. Now I have collected quite a few of his albums, both solo and Gastr del Sol. LouieB Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sir Stewart Posted July 29, 2008 Share Posted July 29, 2008 Listened to XTC's Nonesuch on a roadtrip this weekend and thought of Nat (though she'd probably go since it wasn't an earlier album! ) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Mrs. Peel Posted August 13, 2008 Share Posted August 13, 2008 I'm sad that I won't see a Happy Birthday message from Nat this year. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ms. yvon Posted August 14, 2008 Share Posted August 14, 2008 jen, i had the same thought this morning. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
gogo Posted August 17, 2008 Share Posted August 17, 2008 We were talking about Nat last week, watching the Olympic opening ceremonies. Nat was at our place for the opening ceremonies of the 2006 Winter games, we watched them the night after the Tweedy solo shows at the Fillmore. We ate burritos, she told an almost-dirty joke to the kids and talked about midwifery with my mom and aunt, and we watched the ceremony. All kinds of good times. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
poppydawn Posted August 17, 2008 Share Posted August 17, 2008 Maudie, I was just telling Kim about that beautiful bouquet you sent for Natalie's memorial. I've been thinking about her birthday a lot lately, too. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
skyflynn Posted September 7, 2008 Share Posted September 7, 2008 I just went through some of your old posts in the archive. God, it still breaks my heart that you're gone. I miss you, Nat. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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