LVAD... Left Ventricular Assist Device

THIS BLOG POWERED BY THE THORATEC HEARTMATE II LVAD:















PARTIAL HEART PUMP = LEFT VENTRICULAR ASSIST DEVICE = LVAD = THE HEARTMATE II



THE LVAD ALLOWED ME to go HOME and conquer my normal and newest tasks once again.



Thank you Columbia-Presbyterian... Dr Naka and his Surgery Team, LVAD Nation, Dr Bijou & Dr Bonoan, Dr Mascitelli and Dr Shulman-Marcus!!!



AND TO THE SCORES OF PHYSICIANS, NURSES, PROFESSIONALS AND PEOPLE THAT PUSHED ME ALONG THE WAY... FORWARD.



Thank You God For I Am Blessed!







If I Was An LVAD-NASCAR Race CAR

If I Was An LVAD-NASCAR Race CAR
I would look like this :-)

FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY LVAD DAILY NEWS AND INFO FEED

21 November 2014

LUCK COLLIDING WITH FATE = LVAD

So far, 5 extra years of life was were given to me by a bunch of Gods, Magicians and Genies.

In 2009 I had a silent heart attack.  No tell-tale signs, no indicators gave me any warnings that I was having a heart attack. After all, I was 47, in great physical shape but was watching a lifelong low grade hypertension condition and borderline cholesterol levels, but both were being monitored by my primary doctor.

I had no chest pains; no left arm pains or numbness, just a sour and volatile stomach.  The upset stomach that I experienceD was originally thought to be food poisoning as the Chinese food I ate that night tasted a bit funny, to the point that I did not finish my meal.

Almost a week went by and I found myself more and more lethargic, winded with short walks to the car and finally needing to rest after walking very short distances.
When things couldn't get any worse, I found myself resting for 10 minutes just to walk 10-20 feet.

Upon hearing of my condition, a personal friend, who is a doctor, Dr Bonoan, rushed to my home to examine me. My heart rate was astronomical in the 140-150 range. He ordered me to the hospital ASAP, I was possibly experiencing a pulmonary embolism as I just came home from a cross-country drive from NY to California and back. And this was my 4th crooss-country drive in the prior 12 months.

As it turned out, the hospital determined that I had a heart attack, my EF was at a dire 5-8%. Things were bleak.  I was then discharged from the hospital and hospice care was in the realm of discussions made by doctors, myself and my family.  My original cardiologist even told me I could have a few months left, maybe weeks or a year at the most as heart failure and the damage to my heart was too severe to oxygenate my blood to feed my organs.

As luck collided with fate, a new cardiologist came into my life, Dr Bijou. She corrected my medicines that made me feel better but my future was still certainly short UNTIL she mentioned a revolutionary device called The LVAD, Left Ventricular Assist Device. The "LVAD" acronym was immediately embraced by me and my family and pronounced "EL-VAD". The job of the LVAD as a partial heart pump would restore my circulation to near-normal proportions and in turn bring to me a level of stamina that would make me live more comfortably while being able to walk long distances without resting.  I was now offered a possibility to live a bit longer than originally diagnosed and to live long enough to be "bridged" until a heart transplant.

On November 22, 2009, 6 weeks after my widow-maker heart attack, I found myself on the operating table to receive  an open-heart surgery where the LVAD would be WAS implanted into my chest and grafted to my heart. I was in it to defeat the odds, my odds were in my favor as my surgery was performed by a superstar surgeon named Dr Naka... assisted by Dr TakaSo far, 5 extra years of life was were given to me by a bunch of magicians and genies.

In 2009 I had a silent heart attack.  No tell-tale signs, no indicators gave me any warnings that I was having a heart attack. After all, I was 47, in great physical shape but was watching a lifelong low grade hypertension condition and borderline cholesterol levels, but both were being monitored by my primary doctor.

I had no chest pains; no left arm pains or numbness, just a sour and volatile stomach.  The upset stomach that I experienceD was originally thought to be food poisoning as the Chinese food I ate that night tasted a bit funny, to the point that I did not finish my meal.

Almost a week went by and I found myself more and more lethargic, winded with short walks to the car and finally needing to rest after walking very short distances.
When things couldn't get any worse, I found myself resting for 10 minutes just to walk 10-20 feet.

When Upon hearing of my condition, a personal friend, who is a doctor, Dr Bonoan, rushed to my home to examine me. My heart rate was astronomical in the 140-150 range. He ordered me to the hospital ASAP, I was possibly experiencing a pulmonary embolism as I just came home from a cross-country drive from NY to California and back. And this was my 4th crooss-country drive in the prior 12 months.

As it turned out, the hospital found out determined that I had a heart attack, my EF was at a dire 5-8% (WHAT? It was not, I recall they said 16~). Things were bleak.  I was then discharged from the hospital and hospice care was in the realm of discussions made by doctors, myself and my family.  My original cardiologist even told me I could have a few months left, maybe weeks or a year at the most as heart failure and the damage to my heart was too severE to oxygenate my blood to feed my organs.

As luck collided with fate, a new cardiologist came into my life, Dr Bijou. She corrected my medicines that made me feel better but my future was still certainly short UNTIL she mentioned a revolutionary device called The LVAD, Left Ventricular Assist Device. The "LVAD" acronym was immediately embraced by me and my family and pronounced "EL-VAD". The job of the LVAD as a partial heart pump would restore my circulation to near-normal proportions and in turn bring to me a level of stamina that would make me live more comfortably while being able to walk long distances without resting.  I was now offered a possibility to live a bit longer than originally diagnosed and to live long enough to be "bridged" until a heart transplant.

On November 22, 2009, 6 weeks after my widow-maker heart attack, I was on the operating table to receive open-heart surgery where the LVAD would be implanted into my chest and grafted to my heart. I was in it to defeat the odds. My odds were in my favor as my surgery was performed by a superstar surgeon named Dr Naka... assisted by Dr Takayama at Columbia-Presbyterian Hospital in Manhattan.

5 years later, I have no complaints nor concerns.  Adjusting to the new norm was relatively easy for me as I know that in any type of battle, big or small, victory always is the outcome when one realizes that the actual battle is 90% mental approach.


The last 5 years has have been a blessed ride for me.  I have seen the LVAD community grow from small to big. I have seen advances in LVAD technology soar as each year passes and I am witnessing more and more folks receiving LVADs and given their second chances as I did.

In closing, I would ultimately like to thank my donor family. Their Its name is THORATEC... the companly that makes my Heartmate II LVAD. Every Thoratec employee from the very top to the very bottom (and I've literally met 100s) has showed me a passion and pride that wants to provide the end user, the patient, the person receiving the LVAD, A BETTER QUALITY OF LIFE.

Dr Bonoan...
Dr Bijou...
Dr Naka...
Dr Takayama...

Columbia-Presbyterian Hospital...
Westchester Med...
North Shore LIJ...

Thoratec...

Thank you From The Bottom Of My LVAD!


And the good saga marches on...