Patient
On November 22 of 2024 I had an appointment with Dr. Thukkani to discuss the possibility of having postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) due to symptoms I'd noticed and research I'd done. His nurse did a quick orthostatic test before Dr. Thukkani came in. After entering the exam room he shook my hand and told me I didn't have POTS. There was no discussion, he just told me I did not have POTS. I waited for an explanation. He did inform me that my blood pressure rose during the orthostatic test and my heart rate did not increase appropriately for a POTS diagnosis. I tried to explain that I believed I may have hypermobile ehlers danlos syndrome (HEDS) which would mean if I had POTS as well it would be hyperadrenergic POTS, meaning my BP would increase along with my HR. Dr. Thukkani interrupted me repeatedly, and refused to look at information I'd documented about my symptoms and research. I also tried to explain that my dentist agreed that I may need to see a cardiologist about POTS due to my reaction to anesthesia and the norepinephrine. Again, he dismissed me. Dr. Thukkani saw me, a middle aged, morbidly obese woman, and told me to stay on ozempic and maybe we could do a sleep study. I told him I thought he was being extremely dismissive. I wanted to give him another chance to BE a doctor. Dr. Thukkani sighed and told me he was not being dismissive but he did not want me to leave that room still thinking I may have POTS. He didn't have any other ideas about what I was going through. I had to ask him to move out of my way so I could leave the room. I almost immediately called my general practitioner. I explained what happened, asked her to never refer another patient to that man, and asked for another referral. My new cardiologist did some tests to rule out other issues. Then four days ago, on June 5, 2025 I had a tilt table test to finally test for POTS. The test was positive for hyperadrenergic postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome. I have hyperadrenergic POTS, just like I tried to tell Dr. Thukkani. I also have HEDS. Dr. Thukkani should learn that people who are overweight can have illnesses that have nothing to do with obesity. My treatment could've started months ago but Dr. Thukkani and his arrogance stood in the way. I hope he educates himself on POTS and other illnesses before putting another patient through an office visit like I had to experience with him. I highly recommend NOT seeing Dr. Thukkani. Find another cardiologist who is more knowledgeable and kind to their patients.