Highland resident Diane Martinson was trying to save her dog from a vicious attack by another dog last October when she, at age 59, suffered a massive heart attack.

“It’s amazing and mind-boggling to think that I could be so close to death and now I feel perfectly normal,” Martinson says after lifesaving care from Community Hospital’s accredited Chest Pain Center. “I am extremely grateful to still be here.”

Cardiologist Samer Abbas, MD, FACC, FSCAI says that Martinson is very, very lucky.

“It is almost unheard of – she had three different blocked arteries and they needed three different stents,” Abbas says. “We opened up her arteries so fast that she didn’t lose any muscle and there is no scar tissue. This could have easily been an open heart surgery with a three vessel bypass.”

After Martinson’s heart attack and initial emergency procedure, Abbas was able to bring her back for another procedure to place a new innovative stent in the third involved artery. The Synergy stent is a fourth generation stent newly approved for patients with chronic or recurring coronary artery disease. Martinson was the first patient to get this stent as it became available shortly after her extraordinary rescue by Community Hospital’s Chest Pain Center team.

“I checked her arteries and they were fantastic…wide open,” Abbas says. “Then I put a new stent in the third artery. I chose this particular stent for Diane because of her young age. This stent will be durable and last a long time, long-term. She went home without even a scar or complications and is doing very well. She will be able to live a normal life.”

“My care was wonderful,” Martinson says. “Everyone was so nice and so professional. They made me feel comfortable. Everything went well…and my dog is fine.”

Find out more about the Accredited Chest Pain Centers at the hospitals of Community Healthcare System.