April 23, 2012
Clot-Busting Drug Study Aims to Help Stroke Patients With no Options
Coughing. That is the sound that awoke Jennifer McDougal on the morning on Dec. 28, 2010. Her husband, Rodney, was in the bathroom preparing for work, and coughing. Suddenly, he collapsed. Rodney, then 42, had a history of hypertension, so Jennifer immediately took his blood pressure. It measured 230/100 — dangerously high. “I didn’t know […]
Tags: 2301, 4226, 5252, 5292, 5335, Dr. William Freeman, Rodney McDougal, stroke
March 13, 2012
New Therapy Freezes Out Atrial Fibrillation
Rosalee Johns says she has her life back thanks to a freezing therapy called cryoablation that restored her heartbeat to normal. In 2008, Johns, then age 67, was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation, a condition in which the atria — the upper chambers of the heart — receive irregular electrical impulses that cause erratic heartbeats. Johns’ […]
Tags: 4264, 5252, 5334, Cryoablation, Dr. Fred Kusumoto, heartbeat, irregular heartbeat, Rosalee Johns
March 9, 2012
When Medication is No Longer Effective for Atrial Fibrillation
By MakalaArce
Ron Boyle has had atrial fibrillation for twelve years. He recalls, “When I was in a-fib most of the time, getting upstairs was a problem. Just doing daily routine was a problem. Get up in the morning and being totally fatigued and that’s the way the day would start.” His previous medications were no longer […]
Tags: 4264, 5252, 5335, A-Fib, Atrial Fibrillation, catheter, experience, heart palpitations, irregular heartbeat, patient, Pulmonary Vein Ablation, Pulmonary Vein Isolation
March 5, 2012
Incredible Journey: Surviving an Incurable Disease
“Couldn’t breathe, gasping for air,” is how Bobbie Sofia describes the first sign that something was wrong. In 2007, Bobbie Sofia and her husband, Sam, traveled to San Antonio, Texas from their home of almost forty years in Lake Havasu City, Arizona to attend their daughter, Ashley’s, graduation from Air Force Basic Training. While enjoying […]
Tags: 1136, 2272, 5252, 5279, 5333, amyloidosis, Bobbie Sofia, cardiac amyloidosis, Craig Reeder, CyBorD, D. Eric Steidley, heart failure
December 5, 2011
Before and After Fibromuscular Dysplasia (FMD) Diagnosis
By MakalaArce
Kari Ulrich, a patient with Fibromuscular Dysplasia (FMD), shares her story of struggles before and after being diagnosed with FMD in 2007.
Tags: 5252, coronary artery dissection, Fibromuscular Dysplasia, Heart, Mayo Clinic, Patient Story, stroke
November 15, 2011
Heart attack — not shark attack — almost brings surfer down
New imaging technology helps determine cause, treatment for heart symptoms Many surfers fear sharks. But not Mike Politowicz, 45, a seasoned surfer with 30 years of experience. “Surfing is a form of relaxation,” he says. Relaxation, that is, mixed with a little adrenalin and heart-pounding anticipation of a good ride. But on Aug. 7, 2010, […]
Tags: 5252, 5335, Brian Shapiro, heart attack, M.D., Mike Politowicz
November 10, 2011
Rare treatment for rare disease: Triple transplant
On June 14, 2011, after a 107-day wait in the hospital at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., Kirk Watson, 44, received the news he’d been waiting for — a heart, liver and kidney were available for him. He would be the fourth person to receive a triple transplant at Mayo Clinic and only the 11th […]
Tags: 2272, 3782, 3786, 3793, 5252, 5324, 5334, hereditary amyloidosis, Kirk Watson, Triple Transplant
November 7, 2011
Heart Valve Replacement Surgery
By MakalaArce
I went to Mayo Clinic for heart valve replacement surgery on October 13th, was released on the 18th, and can only say excellent things about the: Surgeon Dr. Hartzell Schaff and his staff. The surgery and recovery went smoothly, I believe, due to Dr. Schaff’s experience and expertise in the type of valve replacement surgery […]
Tags: 4173, 5141, 5252, 5334, cardiovascular, cv, Hartzell Schaff, heart valve, Mayo Clinic, replacement, Surgery
November 1, 2011
Heart repair doesn’t slow baseball player for long
Austin Adamson, 19, was a day away from having heart surgery that would require a median sternotomy – “cracking open” the sternum (breastbone) to reach the heart – when he learned he was a candidate for a less-invasive procedure at Mayo Clinic. Adamson, who lives in Wilmer, Minn., had an atrial septal defect, a congenital […]
Tags: 4254, 5252, 5306, 5335, atrial septal defect, Austin Adamson, Harold Burkhart, MD
October 21, 2011
A Family Member’s Point of View
By MakalaArce
By Lindsay Engelstad I was not a patient at the Mayo Clinic Hospital, but my mother was. Prior to her going into the hospital, I always hear people say “Go to the Mayo Clinic it is the best place to be if you are sick”. Yeah right, it is a hospital and all hospitals are the […]
Tags: 1136, 3640, 3719, 3723, 3739, 5252, 5279, 5333, Arabia, Arizona, breathing, Hodgkin's