Vincent Hudak takes a lot of pride in his home, landscaping and property. But he became continually frustrated in September of 2019, when he couldn’t mow the lawn without stopping to catch his breath.
“I look forward to doing yardwork,” the Highland resident says. “I like to take care of my house and my yard. At that time, if I mowed the lawn and went up and down a row, I would have to stop to rest and catch my breath because my heart was beating so fast and hard.”
Hudak had open heart surgery in 1997, so he monitored his blood pressure very closely every day at home. He knew his heart rate was too high at 110 and 115 on the cuff. A quick trip to his family physician, H. Alan Jones, DO, prompted a consult with the heart team of experts at the hospitals of Community Healthcare System.
Hudak met to discuss his racing heartbeat with Community Care Network electrophysiologist Pratik Patel, MD, on staff at Community Hospital, Munster and St. Catherine Hospital, East Chicago.
"I’ve been to many other doctors in my life and most of them are just all business,” Hudak explains. But, if you go in to see Dr. Patel, it’s like stopping in to see a friend or a buddy with a good bedside manner. He knows his stuff and knows how to make you feel comfortable.”
Hudak’s heart monitor revealed he had atrial fibrillation. Atrial fibrillation or AFib is an irregular heartbeat that causes poor blood flow in the upper two chambers of the heart. With AFib, blood is not complete pumped out, which can cause the remaining blood to pool or clot, leading to stroke, heart failure or other heart-related complications. Although not considered a life-threatening condition, those with AFib are five to seven times more likely to form blood clots and suffer a stroke. Once accurately diagnosed, AFib can often be treated with blood thinning medications such as warfarin.
Immediately, Patel started Hudak on a blood thinner once a day. This past May, he also was admitted to Community Hospital for a “shock” cardioversion treatment to slow his heart rate. It worked for about a month and then his heart rate went back up again over 100 beats per minute.
“Dr. Patel told me that the only other way they could bring my heart rate down was, besides other medicine, to try ablation. The ablation was scheduled at the end of June and worked out very well. Since that time, I have had no issues at all. My heart rate has stayed down in the low 60s.”
Catheter ablation is a minimally invasive procedure that prevents unwanted electrical currents traveling to the upper chambers of the heart. During a catheter ablation, small areas of heart tissue that are causing the irregular heartbeats are destroyed. The resulting lesions help to restore the heart’s regular rhythm.
“After the ablation, Dr. Patel did tell me that I would have to take (the blood thinner) the rest of my life,” Hudak says.
“Despite its proven efficacy, long-term warfarin therapy is not well-tolerated by some patients and carries a significant risk for bleeding and complications,” says Patel.
Hudak says Jones, his family doctor, agrees. “He explained that when a person gets older and starts taking blood thinners, they increase their chances for internal bleeding,” Hudak says. “I saw Dr. Patel and told him that I wanted the WATCHMAN procedure.”
The WATCHMAN implant is a parachute-shaped, self-expanding device that is designed to permanently close off the left atrial appendage, a part of the heart believed to be the source of a majority of stroke causing blood clots.
“The WATCHMAN implant closes off an area of the heart called the left atrial appendage to keep harmful blood clots that may form from entering the bloodstream and potentially causing a stroke,” says Samer Abbas, MD, medical director of the Structural Heart program of Community Healthcare System. “By closing off the left atrial appendage, the risk of stroke is reduced, and over time, patients, including Vincent, may be able to stop taking warfarin.”
For more information about heart care at the hospitals of Community Healthcare System, visit COMHS.org/heart.
