Class 3 medical RBBB

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I have private but have not flown in about 20 years. I have been getting the itch to give it a go again. Probably on a limited basis for a few more years until the kids are out and the house is paid for.

I am slightly concerned (not overly) so about the 3rd class medical. My big concern is from what I understand if I fail it I am done even in Light Sport. Where as if I just leave it the way it is then I could still fly light sport.

Here is the long story although I will try to keep it short. Two years ago I was having some neck pain and getting tingling in my fingers (it is much better now changed the way I sleep). I had an MRI went to a neurosurgeon he said there is some very slight bulging but he did not think enough to cause the issues I was having. He asked if I had ever had my heart checked. I said no. I was very confident it was a pinched nerve or disk issue based on the symptoms.

In any case he recommended a stress test. So I asked my regular Doc what he thought and he said probably wouldn't hurt since I also have a Right Bundle Branch Block(RBBB). This was the first I heard about the RBBB. I don't know why he had not told me about this before maybe he didn't look close at the ECG's he was charging me for or maybe since I had no other issues he didn't think it was worth mentioning since they are generally benign without other symptoms. But that is another story.

So I went to do the regular stress test they stopped it because of the complete RBBB and said I had to do nuclear stress test to get good results. I did the nuclear and it showed some issues I can't remember the exact details. So scheduled an appointment with a heart specialist he said where the problem results were (deepest part of the chest) it is probably a false positive particularly on a big guy like me but for peace of mind he scheduled an angiogram. I had the angiogram and it turns out the pipes are completely clear no problems nuclear test was a false positive and other than the RBBB the ticker is good to go.

My question is do I need to even mention the RBBB to the AME? It is not symptomatic and has been proven to be benign. Will they do an ECG on a class 3? If they do and find the RBBB will I have to go through all the testing again or will they accept the info from my heart doctor?

Other than that I have High BP but it is treated and been under control for a long time and well under the limits they look for. I am over weight (working on that) and my cholesterol is good. In general good health. I am 47. Just trying to get all my ducks in a row. If the class three is going to be an issue then I am tempted to just let things be and fly light sport.
 
As Ron said wait for Dr. Bruce. I had a partial RBB and Bruce took me through the process. If they stopped the treadmill that might be a problem. I know that a particular treadmill protocol is required. Anyway contact Dr. Bruce. He will work with you by email. Make sure you follow his instruction exactly. If you don't understand how to do something he says do, ask him. And yes it must be reported.
 
ronnieh said:
If they stopped the treadmill that might be a problem.
Click to expand...

They only stopped the regular treadmill test because they said they couldn't "read" the results properly with the complete RBBB. So I sat there while they called the insurance company to get the OK to do the nuclear profusion test. As I recall, it was back on the treadmill then get injected with the nuclear material. Then upstairs to get the imaging done. Then I came back the next day and they injected me again and did the imaging again so they could compare the blood flow at rest and under "stress" (really was a walk in park I was expecting much worse when they said "stress" test). But obviously the results of the nuclear test were not what they were looking for so that is when they told me to talk to the heart doc about an angiogram which I did have and that being the definitive test showed everything to be perfectly normal.

The big thing is I really don't want to go through that again just to prove there is nothing wrong, again. It is not comfortable as anyone who has had one can tell you and not cheap. I could buy a lot of flying time for what I spent to prove there was nothing wrong with me short of the conductive RBBB issue.
 
If you choose not to apply for Third Class, as long as you and your doc are satisfied you're safe to fly Light Sport, that remains an option. So, make sure you read Bruce's advice very carefully so you don't apply and then get denied when you could have just stayed Light Sport.
 
If one has a negative angiogram, just get the report. If that is in the time scale coincident with the RtBBB, not to worry. The report will clear your application.

There's one little wrinkle that might a lot of airmen some grief. If you have ever had an EKG that shows an INCOMPLETE Right Bundle Branch block, keep a hold of that EKG. The Cardiovascular Evaluation is NOT NECESSARY for that subset.

:)
 
Unfortunately I didn't even know about the complete RBBB until I went through this whole thing two years ago. I could probably go back and have my doctors pull the previous EKGs looking for the point at which the RBBB started since I had several EKGs for routine and work physicals that had an EKG as part of the exam and up until recently it either did not exist or nobody mentioned it.

The angiogram was done after I was aware of the RBBB the heart specialist did an EKG in their office prior to scheduling my angiogram so I am certain a report from the heart doctor would say as much.

I really would hate to have to go through an angiogram again. While on the scale of bad things that can happen to you in life it is pretty low. Mine was through the groin and the surgeon who performed mine had the strongest hands of any woman I have ever met and I am willing to bet she could turn a piece of charcoal into a diamond by simply crushing it in her hands. When I told her as much she said years of holding arteries closed gave her that grip.
 
I also have an RBBB. Went through the whole work up process, got an upchit, have always disclosed it. Actually the first time it has come up was my most recent long form physical, as a byproduct of turning 30 this year. No issues. I doubt the civilian examiner will cause you any problems if I am good to go. Omitting things is always bad juju though.
 
It the angiogram is less than 2 years old, no worries. You don't go from a negative angiogram to CAD in 2 years. FAA knows that.
 
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