A Tale of Unending Hiccups: The Remarkable Journey of Chris Sands
I guess when you saw my post, you were expecting to see another medical case, and trust me, there are a lot of medical cases that you haven't heard of or didn't know they existed, probably they have not been told to you the way I will tell them to you, so you should sit back, relax and let's have a medical experience. If you have been missing my other post, you can take the time to read my previous posts and enjoy medicine mixed with live events in its best. After reading the post from @busted1 on hiccup, I decided to do a post on a hiccup case.
In the vast realm of medical anomalies, the story of Chris Sands stands as a testament to resilience and the relentless pursuit of answers. While many of us have experienced short-lived hiccups, Chris faced a harrowing reality of uninterrupted hiccups that persisted for an astonishing three years. In this post, we delve into his remarkable journey, shedding light on the underlying causes and the quest for a solution that would bring an end to his extraordinary suffering.
Before the hiccups, he was an aspiring musician at 23 years and while he thought he was getting his live together, one day in 2007, the hiccups came and his entire live changed. The painful hiccups made his live unbearable as it tormented him day and night, and could go for just few minutes only to begin again. When he wanted to eat, the hiccups would make him vomit, and as you would expect, the hiccups kept him awake so many nights.
For easy understanding, let me explain what a hiccup is. It is the contraction of the diaphragm which is a thin flat muscle under the lungs and immediately followed by the closure of the vocal cords. When the diaphragm contracts, air flow into the lung and this will remain until the vocal cord closes causing hiccups. Hiccups is as a result of irritation to the phrenic nerve which is responsible for the contraction and relaxation of the diaphragm. A common cause is the bloating of the stomach leading to the pushing up of the diaphragm. Certain things like eating too much, eating spicy foods, bubbly drinks, heartburn, and so on, can lead to hiccups.
The phrenic nerve goes to the diaphragm then to the chest and goes behind the heart, causing hiccup to be a rare symptom of heart attack. The nerve passes through the neck which is why an enlarged lymph node or thyroid gland can lead to hiccups. The phrenic nerve also connects to the spinal cord and then to the brain, which is why a stroke, brain tumor, and meningitis can cause a hiccup. There are a lot of things that can irritate the phrenic nerves such as alcohol, medications, diabetes, kidney diseases, and so on, and the hiccup is persistent, it can be a symptom of a life-threatening condition and should be investigated.
As a child, Chris suffered from Gastroesophageal reflux (heartburn) and when he went to the hospital, the stomach acid was first attended to by giving medications that suppressed the stomach acids but that didn't work which led to the medical practitioners performing blood works, scans, and other tests. The tests showed that he suffered from Hiatal hernia (meaning that part of his stomach had come up through the diaphragm) thereby allowing acid reflux easily but since he had this since he was a child, this couldn't be the reason for his sudden unending hiccup.
According to the patient, doctors thought it was a psychological thing, or he was probably making it up but psychological testing didn't show it was a psychological issue. Soon the patient began to search the internet for home remedies but they didn't give him any cure. He began to lose weight as he couldn't eat properly or do anything well.
Desperate for a solution, Chris decided to opt for surgery to address his hiatal hernia, a condition he had lived with since childhood. The surgery, known as Laparoscopic Nissen Fundoplication, aimed to fix the hernia and prevent acid reflux by wrapping the upper stomach around the lower esophagus. While it reduced vomiting, the hiccups persisted.
Years later, a doctor from East Asian Medicine in Japan contacted him but this didn't have any head way However, the breakthrough finally came when an anesthesiologist, Dr. Kondo, contacted Chris and urged him to fly to Japan. Comprehensive tests and MRI scans revealed a 1.2-centimeter tumor nestled in his brainstem, particularly the medulla oblongata.
He went to the neurosurgeon to understand what was going on. At this time his symptoms were worse as he now passed out from hiccuping. The tumor was found in the medulla oblongata which is responsible for lots of life functions including breathing, hearth rate, and blood pressure. He was able to get the surgery which lasted 5 hours to remove as many polycystic Astrocytoma as possible which is a benign tumor and the hiccup stopped.
Chris Sands' extraordinary journey through unending hiccups, misdiagnoses, and relentless perseverance shows the complexity of medical anomalies, underscoring the importance of thorough investigation, highlighting that seemingly trivial symptoms can be rooted in underlying conditions, emphasizing the significance of medical research and innovation in improving and saving lives.
Read More
- https://www.healthing.ca/wellness/case-study-man-hiccuped-12-hours-a-day-every-day
- https://www.nydailynews.com/2010/01/13/brain-tumor-responsible-for-mans-four-year-bout-of-dangerous-hiccups/
- https://journal.medizzy.com/hiccups-can-be-due-to-brain-tumor/
Image Reference
Image 1 || NeedPix || Hiccup Hiccups Sob Free Photo
Image 2 || Wikimedia Commons || GastroEsophageal Reflux Disease
Sounds so scary to even read, it is only through imagination that one can understand what he went through, and imagine what this did to his musical career.