the verdict

well, the wife got her angiogram read by the pulmonologist.
everything is fully resolved!

however, she will remain on Coumadin for another 2 weeks (to make the treatment a full 6 months), just to be safe, then she'll have ultrasounds performed on her legs (to ensure that no clots are hanging out there, either) and if everything is clean we have a decision to make:
the doctor said she can either remain on Coumadin for life (which brings with it a 1% chance of bleeding to death) or she stop taking it (which brings about a 5% of a second clotting event). those percentages are pretty much even, so we really don't know what to do. the doctor, even, couldn't tell us. he said her case is unique in that she had no risk factors, and she was so young, so they'll have to play it by ear.

i think we're going to experiment with taking her off of Coumadin for a few weeks, get some genetic testing done to rule out those rare but serious disorders, then see how it goes.
i suppose the really good news about all of this is that the treatment worked and those massive clots in her lungs (she saw both angiograms -- the first one from 6 months ago and the one from yesterday -- and she said it was shocking how large the clots in her lungs were) are gone.

tapping veins

my wife got her angiogram this morning. they were finally able to tap one of her veins, and thusly inject her with the radiocontrast dye. she said it was a horrible feeling as the dye causes an instantaneous release of adrenaline, which causes the heart to race and the fight-or-flight response to kick in...but, just then, they stick you in a big tube and tell you lie still. paranoia and claustrophobia start to creep in (even if you aren't normally claustrophobic), and it gets really creepy.
also, the dye causes the blood vessels to warm up, and it's particularly noticeable around the urethra, so a few seconds after the injection you are convinced you just pissed yourself on the table.

BUT, the good thing is that the test is over. the films will be read by the pulmonologist this afternoon and we'll know what the next course of treatment is (be it continued blood-thinning therapy or not).

i'll update soon with what the pulmonologist finds.

on the poetry front, Guerilla Poetics Project found broadside #62 was just registered. we're averaging a find/register every three days. phenomenal!