Widow Maker

I was admitted to Tampa General Hospital last Tuesday due to chest pain. I’ve spent the past several days more stressed than I’ve ever been in life and have been through a roller coaster of emotions. After days of testing, I’ve been informed I have a 70% plaque blockage in the left main coronary artery, an area known as the “Widow Maker”. It’s called this because when a heart attack happens from platelets or a piece of plaque breaking loose in this area it causes a massive severe heart attack and death usually within a very short period of time. Frequently as short as 5 minutes or less. More info here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Widow_maker Or watch this explination. www.youtu.be/KIEkBneriGo

I did not have a heart attack and I do not have any heart damage. However the blockage is severe enough to be causing problems. In addtion, I have four other arteries being feed by the left main artery that are 50% blocked. Picture it as a tree trunk and roots in reverse, where the blood flows through the tree trunk to the roots feeding the heart oxygen through my blood. This is the most important vessel in the human body. Due to the location of the widow maker blockage, angioplasty and stenting are not possible options to fix my blockage. Therefor on Monday October 21, I will be undergoing an Open heart quadruple bypass, where the surgeon is going to shoot for using arteries from my arms to bypass the blockages going to my heart. As a backup he will use veins from my legs. If I do not do this it’s a certain death in the near future.

This is a very serious extensive operation which while done a lot carries significant risk. I am nervous, anxious, and not looking forward to a difficult recovery. I have selected Cedric Sheffield as the surgeon to do the operation and am confident he’ll do a phenomenal job.

I will be in the cardiac ICU for several days and in the hospital at least a week before being released to go home. Recovery will be at least 8 weeks of therapy and I will forever be following up with a cardiologist to monitor my longterm prognosis. I do not know when I will be capable of posting more news of my status, therefore I have given a couple close friends access to posting on Finding Flattop, which also post to Facebook, to inform anyone who wants to know how things are going.

The blockage was caused by the inherited genetic disorder, Familial Hypercholesterolimia Type IIb. I have been aware of my increased risk for many years and have been on numerous medications to delay or prevent what I’m going through. The cardiologist has told me there isn’t anything else I could have done.

I am grateful that while I delayed coming to get checked out for a few days from the first signs of chest pain, that I finally decided to come in before it became fatal.

When I’m capable, I’ll be back online to let everyone know personally how it’s went.