“There was no time for me to be scared,” said Cheveria. “I remember my husband saying, ‘you did it, I love you.’ Then I gave my daughter a kiss and it all went black.”

Blood pressure medication helped get Cheveria’s heart pumping again, but the life-threatening clots in her lungs, called a pulmonary embolism, were putting intense strain on her heart. Cardiologists at Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute had to work quickly to remove the clots and keep her heart from stopping a second time. 

Keith Benzuly, MD, an interventional cardiologist at Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute, began an emergency thrombectomy to clear the clots. During the highly specialized procedure, a catheter was run from Cheveria’s leg up through a blood vessel, through her heart, and into her lungs.

“This was a life-threatening emergency,” said Dr. Benzuly. “It’s really difficult when you’re taking care of someone who is that sick and their life is in your hands. I tried to focus on the technical aspects of the procedure, because I knew that this was the best chance for Chelsea to survive and for her baby to have a mother.”

The procedure was a success, the blood clots were cleared, and Cheveria’s heart was finally stable. Shortly after, her baby girl was back in her arms, right where she belonged.

“Once I woke up and held her again, I was never letting go,” said Cheveria.

Pulmonary Embolism after C-section

A blood clot in the lungs is one of the most common causes of pregnancy-related deaths in the United States, and a cesarean section doubles this risk. While clotting is a known complication, Robbye McNair, MD, the obstetrics and gynecology specialist at Northwestern Medicine who delivered Cheveria’s baby, says it’s still rare.

“Everything was routine, the baby was out and Chelsea was holding her,” said. Dr. McNair. “We were about to close the next to last layer of the procedure when she went unresponsive. Chelsea had no risk factors, and this was unfortunately random. I want to reassure patients that these are rare events, and most deliveries are uncomplicated.”

A team approach

Before Cheveria’s thrombectomy could be performed, doctors had to first address another issue – life-threatening bleeding from an artery in her uterus. Daniel Schimmel, MD, director of the Pulmonary Embolism Response Team (PERT) at Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute, swiftly coordinated a treatment plan between interventional cardiologists, cardiac surgeons, pulmonologists, and interventional radiologists.

“When you think about the baby who might lose a mom, you are not just trying to save a patient, but you’re trying to protect a family,” said Dr. Schimmel. “This was all-hands-on-deck, everyone running to the bedside.”

Robert Lewandowski, MD, an interventional radiologist at Northwestern Medicine, first performed an emergency uterine artery embolization to stop the bleeding, allowing Cheveria to take the blood thinners needed for a thrombectomy.

“This was a unique situation that required significant multi-discipline collaboration,” said Dr. Lewandoski. “Chelsea urgently needed blood thinners to help fix the clots, but that would exacerbate her uterine bleeding. Expedited care in the right order was paramount.”

Because the PERT was already in place, Cheveria was able to get multi-disciplinary and life-saving care right when she needed it.

A family of four

Despite the harrowing hours she experienced after giving birth, Cheveria spent just five days in the hospital before discharge to her home in Chicago. She’s now adjusting to life with her new baby girl Zairah (zye-ruh), her 4-year-old daughter Annayiah (uh-nye-uh), and her husband, Scott. Cheveria is sharing her story to prove that happy endings are possible, even with some bumps along the way.

“I now have a hematologist, a cardiologist, and a therapist,” Cheveria said with a smile. “And I already want another baby, I'm not afraid to go again. I just love being a mom.”

For more information on heart care and women’s health, visit nm.org.

“About 15 to 20 minutes later, I heard a sudden grunt and out of the corner of my eye, I saw Derrick’s arm come up, pressed tightly against his chest,” said Zebedee, also a Waukegan resident. “I asked again, ‘Are you okay?’ but when I turned to look at him fully, he said nothing. The look in his eyes is something that still haunts me to this day.”

Recognizing the symptoms as a potential heart attack, Zebedee rushed to the nearest emergency department at Northwestern Medicine Catherine Gratz Griffin Lake Forest Hospital.

“I drove right up to the ER doors, telling the man behind the counter, ‘My son’s having a heart attack.’ Derrick walked in on his own, still holding his arm against his chest,” recalled Zebedee. “They took him into a room right away while I waited in what felt like an eternity of silence in the waiting room. From then on everything was overwhelming and unfamiliar.”

Hall was experiencing a non–ST elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI), a type of heart attack caused by a partial blockage in a coronary artery, the blood vessels that carry oxygenated blood to the heart. Clinicians also discovered that he had advanced coronary artery disease, far more extensive than typically seen in someone his age.

“When blood flow is reduced, the heart struggles to function; it’s unable to beat properly and becomes deprived of oxygen, which damages the heart muscle and can quickly become life threatening,” explained Ricardo Boix Garibo, MD, cardiac surgeon at Northwestern Medicine McHenry Hospital. “Time is critical during a heart attack. His mother’s quick recognition of symptoms and decision to get him to the hospital quickly likely saved Derrick’s life and prevented more extensive damage to his heart.”

After initial stabilization, Derrick was transferred to Northwestern Medicine McHenry Hospital for planned surgery later in the week. Within hours of arrival, his condition became urgent.

“Despite an intra‑aortic balloon pump and nitroglycerine drip, Derrick continued to have significant chest pain,” said Dr. Boix. “His risk was increasing quickly. We made the decision to take him for emergency surgery.”

Dr. Boix performed a coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) procedure with support from an extensive multidisciplinary team.

“Heart surgery requires a highly coordinated team effort — from the surgeon, cardiologists, anesthesia staff, physician assistants and perfusion teams to our nurses and ICU staff. Every individual plays a vital role,” Dr. Boix said. “At McHenry Hospital, we are privileged and fortunate enough to have an exceptional team prepared to respond rapidly in emergency situations. Their skill, dedication, and teamwork are reflected in outstanding patient outcomes such as this one.”

Hall’s postoperative recovery went smoothly and he continues to do well during follow‑up visits. While he is feeling good, he says he is still working to build back his strength and endurance.

“I know it will take time, but I’m feeling good and continuing to improve,” said Hall. “I am increasing my walking distance and I just had a stress test, which went well. I am looking forward to getting back to how I was before the heart attack.”

Family Praises Skill, Communication, and Compassion

For Zebedee, the experience was overwhelming from the moment her son was taken back for treatment. She credits the Northwestern Medicine McHenry Hospital team with bringing structure, calm, and clarity during the most frightening hours of her life.

“A room was ready the second he arrived. There were monitors, wires—people moving quickly but with complete control,” Zebedee said. “They allowed us to stay with him, talked us through everything, and never made us feel like we were in the way. Their compassion stayed with us.”

Meeting Dr. Boix gave both the patient and family a sense of immediate trust.

“He was calm, gentle, and honest,” said Zebedee. “He explained the plan without rushing, always giving us time to ask questions. After the surgery, he checked on Derrick regularly and walked us through every detail of what he had done. His patience and kindness meant everything.”

“Dr. Boix was incredible through the whole thing,” recalled Hall. “He always took the time to explain what was going on, what was going to happen and what I could expect. He listened to me and my family when we had questions.” 

The family was so moved by the care they received that they wrote letters to Dr. Boix and the ICU staff, delivering them in person. Hall’s nephew personally thanked Dr. Boix for saving his best friend. 

“We needed them to know what they did for us,” Lisa said. “They didn’t just care for Derrick, they cared for our family. Dr. Boix is our hero, and the entire team will always hold a place in our hearts.”

A Silent Risk That Often Goes Undetected in Younger Adults

Hall’s diagnosis also sheds light on a growing but often overlooked reality: coronary artery disease can develop at any age, and many people don’t know they have it until a cardiac event occurs. While undergoing testing for his heart attack, physicians discovered that Derrick had advanced coronary artery disease, far more severe than what doctors typically see in someone in their mid‑30s.

“I had no idea heart disease could happen to me, especially at 35,” said Hall. “There’s no heart history in my family, so we were all surprised.”

Coronary artery disease can progress silently for years. When arteries begin to narrow and reduce blood flow, the heart becomes deprived of the oxygen it needs to function properly, which can quickly become life‑threatening if not treated.

Heart disease remains the leading cause of death in the United States. Nearly half of all Americans have some form of cardiovascular disease, often without knowing it. Understanding personal risk factors and staying proactive about screenings, blood pressure checks, and cholesterol management can help identify problems before a life-threatening event.

“Prevention and early detection are critical,” Dr. Boix said. “Derrick’s story is a powerful reminder that heart disease does not always look the way we expect. Knowing your personal risk factors, including family history, and focusing on a lifestyle that emphasizes exercise, healthy nutrition, and sleep are the first steps in keeping your heart healthy.”

The Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute offers risk reduction programs based on both lifestyle and genetic factors. To better understand your own heart disease risk, take the online Heart Risk Assessment. For more information about Northwestern Medicine’s top‑ranked cardiovascular care, visit nm.org/heart or call 312.NM.HEART (312.664.3278).

To learn more about Northwestern Medicine, visit https://news.nm.org/.

CHICAGO, IL – February 11, 2026 – Chicago philanthropist Neil G. Bluhm and the Bluhm Family Foundation are underscoring their commitment to life-saving heart care with a $50 million gift to the Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute (BCVI). The gift builds on two decades of generosity from Bluhm, bringing his total gifts to BCVI to $135 million. The additional funds will expand access to cardiac care and bolster what is consistently ranked among the top 10 heart programs in the nation and among the top 20 cardiac surgery centers in the world. 

“My main goal has always been to ensure that anyone who needs world-class heart care can get it,” said Bluhm. “We made this possible 20 years ago in downtown Chicago and built on that when we expanded care into the suburbs. It has been one of my greatest honors to watch this program touch so many lives and I’m humbled to continue supporting this mission.”

World-class care for all

Since Bluhm’s initial gift to establish BCVI in 2005, the institute has treated hundreds of thousands of patients and saved countless lives across Chicago and beyond. Subsequent contributions helped advance health equity by extending top-tier care throughout the region, closer to where people live and work. Bluhm’s generosity has supported research, recruited physicians, and established programs like the Center for Artificial Intelligence and the Bluhm Heart Hospital at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.

This latest $50 million gift will support the following initiatives:

• Further expand access to heart care by bringing new technologies and innovative therapies to Northwestern Medicine’s nine-hospital health network
• Increase the footprint of Bluhm Heart Hospital with more procedural space
• Support new research and clinical trials
• Develop breakthrough innovations for leading-edge advances in cardiovascular medicine
• Support fellowships to train the next generation of physician talent
• Recruit world-class physician leaders

“Generous contributions from the Bluhm Family have continuously fueled our commitment to saving lives and putting patients first,” said Howard Chrisman, MD, president and chief executive officer, Northwestern Memorial HealthCare. “By investing in the future of cardiac medicine, BCVI will continue to stand as a beacon of hope for patients all over the world and for generations to come.”

Building on better medicine

Because of Bluhm’s philanthropy, BCVI has sustained explosive growth since its inception. The institute went from treating 1,000 patients in its inaugural year to more than 48,000 new patients in 2025. Today, the institute spans 18 locations throughout the greater Chicago area and employs 2,400 clinicians. A team of more than 186 specialized cardiologists, cardiac and vascular surgeons take on some of the toughest cases that other health systems are forced to turn away. To date, BCVI has achieved milestones such as:

• Ranked among the top 10 cardiology, heart and vascular programs in the nation by U.S. News & World Report for the last 10 years
• Among the top 20 hospitals in the world for cardiac surgery as ranked by Newsweek
• Seventh ranked patient-preferred hospital in the nation for heart care
• Among the top 15 hospitals in the nation for heart attack survival
• 900% cardiac surgery growth since 2005
• 96% patient satisfaction
• Treated patients from at least 40 countries and all 50 states
• 3,100 cardiac and vascular manuscripts published over the last three years
• $100 million in funding from the National Institutes of Health since 2020

“As we conclude the celebration of BCVI’s first 20 years, this extraordinary gift ensures we are not only honoring our past, but shaping the next 20 years of cardiovascular care,” said Patrick M. McCarthy, MD, executive director of Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute. “This commitment keeps Northwestern Medicine at the forefront of cardiovascular medicine, empowering us to deliver superior outcomes for patients today and into the future.”

Thanks to Bluhm’s unwavering support, BCVI can continue making strides in the fight against heart disease by making care more accessible, supporting clinical talent, advancing infrastructure, and pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in cardiac medicine. 

For more information about cardiovascular treatments at Northwestern Medicine, visit nm.org/heart.

CHICAGO, IL – September 2, 2025 – Jessica Lopez doesn’t remember being able to see. The 32-year-old from Chicago, Ill., spent most of her childhood in a hospital, battling leukemia and retinoblastoma that would leave her completely blind. Although years of chemotherapy would help treat the cancers, it would lead to other health problems later in life.  

In November 2023, Lopez was engaged to be married when she found out she needed a new heart and a new liver. She was in heart failure from cardiomyopathy, a type of heart disease affecting the heart muscle, and the impact had spread to her liver. Lopez was listed for a double-organ transplant at Northwestern Memorial Hospital and spent one year on the waiting list. During that time, her condition began affecting a third organ. Lopez no longer needed just a heart and liver – she also needed a new kidney.  

Despite being considered high-risk for the procedure, Lopez says she was never scared. 

“I’ve always been a very positive person, and I don’t like to ever think negatively,” said Lopez. “I was confident from the very beginning that my doctors at Northwestern Medicine were going to do this successfully.”

Finding the right match

Triple-organ transplants are incredibly rare, with only 59 transplants of the heart, liver, and kidney recorded in the U.S. to date. Specialized teams with the Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute (BCVI) and the Northwestern Medicine Organ Transplant Center had performed a successful triple transplant in the past and were ready to take on Lopez’s case.  

“From the day I met her in clinic, I knew we were going to pull out all the stops to do what we needed to do to get her feeling better,” said Benjamin Bryner, MD, a cardiac surgeon at Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute. “She has an attitude that’s really positive, she’s endearing, and has a great sense of humor. Just walking out of the clinic room, I thought, ‘this is going to be tricky, but we absolutely have to do this.’”

Wait times for triple-organ transplants are often longer than those for single-organ transplants since all three organs must come from the same donor. This can complicate the organ approval process, as sometimes two out of three organs may match but not the third. 

“When you have multiple failing organs, along with a patient who is young and has heart damage due to chemotherapy as opposed to the usual heart disease, it gets a lot more complicated,” said Dr. Bryner. “It’s unusual to find a recipient who can safely get through this complex of an operation.”

On February 24, three organs became available, and Lopez went in for her transplant. Lopez’s heart and liver were transplanted together before a different group of surgeons could move on to the kidney. 

“We transplanted the heart and liver in one block to limit the amount of time the organs go without blood or oxygen,” said Juan Carlos Caicedo, MD, transplant surgeon and surgical director of the Liver Transplant Program at Northwestern Medicine. “The heart and the liver stay connected the whole time from the donor to the recipient. While Dr. Bryner was doing the heart transplant, we were sewing the liver graft. You have two surgeons working simultaneously and that’s one of the advantages of our team.” 

Looking to the future

Lopez is now thriving with her new heart, liver, and kidney, and has been in remission from cancer for 20 years. 

“I feel like I was reborn again,” said Lopez. “I have more energy, my heart beats much stronger and my hands are even warmer. I’m incredibly grateful for my organ donor and their family. Because of their selfless decision, I’ve been given a second chance at life and can start planning for my future.”

Despite being blind with multiple medical challenges, Lopez never tells herself there’s something she can’t do.

“If I have to go somewhere I use landmarks when traveling on my own,” said Lopez. “My phone has accessibility to access rideshare and social media apps. When cooking for myself I use my hands to locate items on the stove. I cook things like rice, seafood, and spaghetti. It’s just about setting my mind to it.”

After recovering from surgery, she plans to attend Loyola University Chicago to study criminal investigation. She hopes to pursue a career in forensics and dreams of one day collecting evidence at crime scenes. 

Lopez and her fiancé, Christopher, are now planning a wedding in California and hope to tie the knot in 2026.  

Cancer’s toll on the heart

An estimated 18 million cancer survivors are currently in the United States and the number is expected to increase to nearly 22 million by 2030. Unfortunately, the same treatments that have improved outcomes for treating cancer can also damage the heart. 

According to the National Cancer Institute, adult survivors of childhood cancers are 10 times more likely to develop coronary disease and 15 times more likely to develop heart failure than their siblings. Treatment-related cardiovascular side effects – known as cardiotoxicities – are also common among survivors of adult cancers.

“When you think about life being unfair, Jessica was dealt a really difficult hand,” said Jonathan Rich, MD, a heart failure and heart transplantation cardiologist at Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute. “As an infant, Jessica was diagnosed with cancer and found a way to be a cancer survivor. But in her case, the treatment she needed to become a cancer survivor likely led to her developing heart failure. It feels really unfair. Unfortunately, we do see this and in her in case I think that’s exactly what happened.” 

The Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University at Northwestern Memorial Hospital and the Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute offer a collaborative Cardio-Oncology Program. The program provides seamless care between cardiology and oncology services for patients affected by cancer. 

To learn more about heart failure and transplant options, visit nm.org.

PALOS HEIGHTS, IL — JUNE 27, 2025 — Northwestern Medicine Palos Hospital is proud to announce the opening of a new hybrid vascular operating room (OR), bringing leading-edge surgical technology and advanced vascular care to the south suburbs. This milestone reflects Northwestern Medicine’s ongoing commitment to providing world-class care closer to home.

The new hybrid OR features a ceiling-mounted fluoroscopic/x-ray system with integrated ultrasound, intravascular ultrasound (IVUS), and navigational software. This advanced imaging suite enables surgeons to perform complex vascular procedures with greater precision, reduced radiation exposure and improved surgical efficiency.

“The future of imaging in vascular surgical practice is available now,” said Gabriel Wallace, MD, vascular surgeon and director of vascular surgery for the Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute at Northwestern Medicine Palos Hospital. “The hybrid system allows surgeons to see with incredible clarity, treat with greater accuracy and do so in a way that’s safer for both patients and staff. It’s a game-changer for our community.”

The hybrid OR includes overlay image technology to streamline procedures and reduce radiation, with the potential for future upgrades to fiberoptic real-time navigation (FORS)—a non-radiating technology recently introduced at Northwestern Memorial Hospital Chicago.

The launch of the hybrid OR coincides with the arrival of vascular surgeon Nandan Nath, MD, who joined Northwestern Medicine Palos Hospital earlier this year. His addition doubles the hospital’s vascular surgery capacity and expands access to both in-office and surgical vascular care.

“This new operating room and the addition of Dr. Nath allow us to serve more patients with the most advanced tools available,” said Dr. Wallace. “Dr. Nath has also established a clinic in Mokena for the Northwestern Medicine Vascular and Vein Center, allowing better access to the office for patients who live further south.”

One of those patients is Ed Langevin, a 63-year-old Orland Park resident. The retiree underwent two life-changing procedures to treat a blocked superior mesenteric artery—a condition known as mesenteric ischemia.

“I thought I was a goner,” said Langevin. “I couldn’t eat, I was losing weight fast, and no one could figure out what was wrong. Then I met Dr. Wallace.”

After being diagnosed in May 2024, Langevin underwent surgery in June 2024 and a follow-up procedure in March 2025. Today, he’s back to spending time with his grandchildren, volunteering at his church and enjoying his favorite sandwiches from Submarine City in Orland Park. Earlier this week, he joined Dr. Wallace for a behind-the-scenes look at the new OR before the space undergoes terminal cleaning and disinfection in advance of the first surgeries in early July.

“Dr. Wallace told me, ‘We can fix this,’ and he did,” said Langevin. “Now I can eat again, take walks with my wife, play with my grandkids, and just enjoy life. I feel very blessed to have access to this caliber of care so close to home. This technology is really something.”

Among the advanced procedures now available at Northwestern Medicine Palos Hospital is fenestrated endovascular aneurysm repair (FEVAR), an advanced, minimally invasive procedure for treating complex abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA). This technique uses custom-designed grafts with small openings—called fenestrations—to maintain blood flow to vital organs while repairing the weakened section of the aorta.

“FEVAR allows us to treat high-risk aneurysms and treat patients with greater precision, with significantly shorter recovery times compared to open surgery,” said Dr. Wallace. “By tailoring the graft to each patient’s anatomy, we can provide a personalized treatment to restore blood flow safely and effectively. What was once an operation with a giant incision, a week in the hospital, and 6 weeks recovery can now be done with a tiny incision and a one-night hospitalization.”

Lockport resident Chuck Schneider, an 86-year-old retired machinist and army veteran, was among the first patients to have the FEVAR surgery at Northwestern Medicine Palos Hospital. Diagnosed years earlier with an AAA, Schneider required surgery when the aneurysm ballooned to a dangerous size. His medical team at the VA recommended he see Dr. Wallace who could repair the aneurysm minimally invasively.

“When I met Dr. Wallace, he told me he could fix the aneurysm without cutting me open and I knew he was the surgeon I wanted,” said Schneider. “I had complete confidence in him and his team. He’s honest and straightforward, so I knew I was in the best hands, and I wouldn’t have to travel far. In less than two weeks I felt great. I was surprised by how fast I recovered.”

After surgery, Schneider is back to doing the things he loves, including spending time with his wife of 60 years Joann and continuing his annual tradition of pheasant hunting with his sons. In September, he’ll travel to Germany to visit his granddaughter and meet his great grandchild for the first time.

With the opening of the hybrid OR, Northwestern Medicine Palos Hospital continues to elevate the standard of care in the south suburbs—ensuring that patients like Ed and Chuck do not have to travel far to receive the most advanced vascular treatments available.

About Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute
Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute, celebrating its 20^th anniversary in 2025, is an innovative powerhouse in developing the latest, safest advances in cardiovascular care. Anchored in downtown Chicago, it has expanded and integrated across the Northwestern Medicine health system, bringing advanced cardiovascular services close to where patients live and work.

For more information about Northwestern Medicine’s top ranked cardiovascular care, go to nm.org/heart or call (312) NM-HEART. To learn more about Northwestern Medicine, visit https://news.nm.org/.

“For both patients and physicians, it can be challenging to balance the risk and benefits of continuous anticoagulation therapy,” said Rod Passman, MD, MSCE cardiac electrophysiologist at Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute and director of the Center for Arrhythmia Research at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. “Currently, standard of care for AFib leaves many patients on blood thinners for the rest of their lives even if they experience very infrequent arrhythmias either on their own or as the result of medications or ablation treatment.”

The seven-year trial will recruit participants at more than 80 sites nationwide, randomizing them to either receive the current standard of care of continuous blood thinners or the “pill-in-pocket” treatment directed by a study app on Apple Watch. The trial will also examine whether this new approach can reduce major bleeding events compared to continuous therapy.

Dr. Passman is leading a clinical trial that, if successful, could potentially provide a more personalized approach to preventing AFib-related stroke. The Rhythm Evaluation for AntiCoagulaTion (REACT-AF) trial will  monitor a participant’s AFib episodes to attempt to reduce patients’ continuous and lifelong reliance on blood-thinning medication. A collaboration between Northwestern Medicine and the American Heart Association, the study is funded by a multi-million-dollar grant awarded to Northwestern University and Johns Hopkins University from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.

“We know that risk of stroke is greatest in the weeks following an episode of AFib then returns to a low level, which suggests the potential for anticoagulant therapy only as needed rather than every day of the year,” says Dr. Passman, the principal investigator for REACT-AF. “However, many patients have no symptoms of AFib, so treating in the moment is challenging. That’s where wearable technology comes in.”

The trial will use a custom study app on Apple Watch that utilizes its powerful heart health features to monitor heart activity and notify patients when they’re entering an episode. When alerted to an episode, participants will start blood-thinning medications only for a few weeks when they are considered at highest risk for stroke.

“If we can show this ‘pill-in-pocket’ strategy is equally protective against stroke and also reduces bleeding caused by these blood thinners, that could potentially save lives, reduce cost, improve quality of life and fundamentally change the standard of care for millions of patients living with AFib,” said Dr. Passman, who for ten years has studied solutions to end the standard “one-size-fits-all” practice of prescribing lifelong blood thinners to everyone with AFib.

To participate in the clinical trial, individuals must have an iPhone. Apple Watch devices are provided to participants through a contribution from Apple.

“This is an exciting opportunity to better understand how this technology can help us better personalize patient care,” said Dr. Passman. “Why should patients expose themselves to the risk and cost of these drugs when they may not be benefiting?”

Individuals interested in enrolling in the study should visit ClinicalTrials.gov to review inclusion criteria and find a trial site near them.

Northwestern is the lead study site. Partnering institutions include Johns Hopkins, Stanford University and University of California at San Francisco. REACT-AF is funded by grant number 1U24HL165066-01; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT05836987.

For information on the Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute’s Center for Heart Rhythm Disorders or to find other cardiovascular clinical trials, visit heart.nm.org. To learn more about Northwestern Medicine, visit news.nm.org.

About Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute

Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute is an innovative powerhouse in developing the latest, safest advances in cardiovascular care. Anchored in downtown Chicago, it has expanded and integrated across the Northwestern Medicine health system, bringing advanced cardiovascular services close to where patients live and work. Consistently recognized as one of the top cardiology and cardiac surgery programs in the country, Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute at Northwestern Memorial Hospital is ranked seventh in the country by U.S. News & World Report in the annual “America’s Best Hospitals” rankings.

For more information about Northwestern Medicine’s top ranked cardiovascular care, go to nm.org/heart or call (312) NM-HEART. For more information about Northwestern Medicine, visit https://news.nm.org/.

CHICAGO, IL – February 14, 2025 – Over the past two decades, the Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute (BCVI) has become a global destination for life-saving therapies, breakthrough procedures, and research that has transformed cardiovascular care. Founded on Valentine’s Day in 2005, BCVI was created with a generous gift from local philanthropist Neil G. Bluhm who wanted to help Northwestern Medicine meet the growing need for world-class cardiovascular care in Chicago and beyond. 

“I felt it would be important to the city that we have a great heart hospital instead of a situation where the wealthy were traveling elsewhere and everybody else was not getting great treatment,” said Bluhm. 

 After 20 years, with hundreds of thousands of patients treated and countless lives saved, Northwestern Medicine physicians, nurses, staff and patients will celebrate BCVI’s 20^thanniversary on February 14 during American Heart Month. 

 Cardiovascular diseases remain the leading cause of death, but breakthrough discoveries and new technologies are dramatically lowering that burden. To date, the BCVI team of more than 186 specialized cardiologists, cardiac and vascular surgeons have accomplished milestones such as:  

• Ranked among the top 10 cardiology, heart, and vascular programs in the nation by U.S. News & World Report for the last nine years
• Ranked among the top 20 hospitals in the world for cardiac surgery with over 900% growth in procedures since BCVI began
• Treated patients from at least 27 countries and all 50 states
• Seventh ranked patient-preferred hospital in the nation for heart care
• 95% patient satisfaction in 2024 
• Best heart failure survival in the nation
• Among the top 15 hospitals in the nation for heart attack survival
• First in the world to implant the Impella BTR heart pump
• Among the first in the nation to offer pulsed field ablation to treat atrial fibrillation  
• Secured $100 million in funding from the National Institutes of Health since 2020 
• Recruited more than 40 top-talent physicians over the last three years
• Home to three American Heart Association (AHA) Presidents
• A record six AHA Strategically Funded Research Networks totaling $25 million
• Home to three of the most highly cited scientific authors, top 1% in the world 

“This anniversary is a tremendous milestone for the Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute and underscores our commitment to our patients and the communities we serve,” said Howard Chrisman, MD, president and chief executive officer, Northwestern Memorial HealthCare. “Our steadfast commitment to grow and expand access to world-class heart care throughout the Chicagoland area has been and will always be a driving force for Northwestern Medicine.”

A gift from the heart 

In the early 2000’s, Bluhm was treated at Northwestern Memorial Hospital for heart issues. On February 14, 2005, he generously donated a $10 million gift, and the Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute was born. The gift facilitated the recruitment of renowned cardiothoracic surgeon Patrick M. McCarthy, MD, a world leader in cardiac surgery, with the goal of building a world-class heart and vascular program accessible to all Chicagoans. 

 Along with several other gifts over the years, in February 2022, Bluhm and the Bluhm Family Charitable Foundation announced a $45 million gift to establish the Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Heart Hospital at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. The gift expands cardiac care capacity and addresses health equity by supporting under-resourced Chicago communities, including the soon-to-open Northwestern Medicine Bronzeville Outpatient Care Center. 

 “The transformation has been stunning. From a relatively small program we grew into a powerhouse with BCVI facilities across the region and growing every year. Mr. Bluhm’s generous gift allowed us to hire and train the best doctors and teams of care providers and rapidly adopt transformative new technologies and procedures,” said Dr. McCarthy, who is now the executive director of BCVI. 

Expanding care and saving more lives 

BCVI’s rapid growth can be attributed to its ability to recruit and train top-tier talent. Douglas Johnston, MD, surgical director of BCVI and chief of cardiac surgery, has been the force behind the recent meteoric rise of the cardiac surgery program. Since joining BCVI in 2022, Dr. Johnston has grown the program by a staggering 42%. BCVI performs about 2,750 cardiac surgeries per year, compared to 250 cases 20 years ago, and BCVI performs one of the highest volumes of surgical and transcatheter heart valve procedures in the country.

 “We’ve seen exceptional growth at our downtown campus and in our regional programs. Waiting for an appointment is one of the most frustrating things for a heart patient with a new diagnosis, and our goal is to decrease wait times and improve access for all patients,” said Dr. Johnston. 

 BCVI’s success has allowed the program to treat more patients and stimulate job growth in the Chicago area. In 2005, the institute had 300 employees and treated 1,000 new patients annually. Today, BCVI has 2,400 employees and treats 48,000 new patients each year.

 Anchored in downtown Chicago, BCVI has expanded across all Northwestern Medicine locations and is now integrated into nine Northwestern Medicine hospitals. This makes it possible for patients to receive most cardiovascular care in locations close to home, only traveling downtown for highly complex procedures. 

 “The landscape for heart failure treatment has transformed remarkably over the last two decades, offering patients more options and more hope than ever before. We have achieved the best heart failure survival rates in the U.S. for two consecutive years. This success is rooted in a highly integrated system of care, where patients receive state-of-the-art treatment close to home. We are now expanding this model across our network to ensure excellence in care for all our regional programs,” said Jane Wilcox, MD, associate chief of cardiology at BCVI.

 Taking the future to heart 

Through its partnership with Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, BCVI researchers are pushing the boundaries of cardiovascular treatments through ongoing clinical trials. Their discoveries drive advancements that lead to better therapies, minimally invasive procedures, quicker recovery times, and improved patient outcomes. 

• BCVI helped introduce a non-surgical valve replacement procedure for the sickest patients with aortic stenosis. 
• BCVI helped accelerate FDA approval for new technology to replace a leaky tricuspid valve through a catheter. 
• Clinical investigators helped secure FDA approval for blockbuster medications like Ozempic, Wegovy, and Jardiance. 
• The BCVI Clinical Trials Unit has more than 10,000 research study participants enrolled in 100 ongoing clinical trials.
• 3,100 cardiac and vascular manuscripts published over the last three years.
• Twelve national principal investigators represented in clinical trials.

 “Every breakthrough or technological advance began with a question, often at the bedside. From that curiosity spawns research and via research discovery ensues. It is the steady arc of relentless research that fuels best patient outcomes and we in the BCVI are on the leading edge of scientific discovery,” said Clyde W. Yancy, MD, MSc, chief of cardiology at BCVI and vice dean of health equity at Feinberg School of Medicine.

 Leveraging their advancements over the past 20 years, BCVI leaders are making strides towards innovations that will improve patient lives for generations to come, including: 

• The use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) such as machine learning to identify patients with advanced heart failure and patients at risk of developing atrial fibrillation and heart disease
• Combating a sonographer shortage by using an algorithm to automate measurements on echocardiograms
• Studying whether using a smartwatch to monitor atrial fibrillation could alleviate lifelong reliance on blood thinners 
• Engineering human heart tissue to better understand a range of cardiovascular conditions 

 “When we started this journey 20 years ago, the iPhone hadn’t been invented, and today we use artificial intelligence to read all electrocardiograms. Replacing heart valves without surgery was science fiction, and now it is everyday practice. Thanks to Mr. Bluhm, and the talented team we have built, the next 20 years should be just as transformative as the last 20 years,” said Dr. McCarthy.

 For more information on BCVI and cardiovascular treatments, visit NM.org/heart. 

When Meyers’ symptoms got worse, he was admitted to a hospital in Los Angeles and was diagnosed with heart failure. He quickly flew home to Chicago to be closer to family and get treatment from specialists at Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute.

Preparing for a new heart

Meyers was admitted to Northwestern Memorial Hospital on November 18. He was seen by Sarah Chuzi, MD, a heart failure and transplant specialist at Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute, who put him on the transplant list for a new heart.

After just a few weeks of waiting, a heart became available. On December 3, Meyers went in for his transplant with Duc Pham, MD, a cardiac surgeon at Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute. Because Meyers recovered so quickly, he was discharged to go home on December 19 – just one week before Christmas – and got to ring the transplant bell.

“The silver lining to having heart failure and a heart transplant when you’re young is that people tend to be really resilient and have smooth recoveries,” said Dr. Chuzi. “Korey came into our hospital extremely sick. We’re so lucky we were able to give him this gift of life and it’s especially meaningful that he gets to go home right before Christmas.”

Meyers is now looking forward to spending the holidays with his family and taking care of his new heart.

“This will be the best Christmas for me,” said Meyers. “I’m looking forward to doing better with my new heart. I’ll make sure I exercise more, eat better, and I’ll cherish this heart for the rest of my life.”

More about heart failure

Heart failure occurs when the heart struggles to pump enough blood and oxygen through the rest of the body. The condition impacts 6.7 million Americans and is responsible for about 14% of deaths in the United States.

Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute (BCVI) has teams that specialize in heart failure treatment and transplantation. The BCVI is ranked among the best hospitals in the world for heart failure and is currently conducting clinical trials to improve patient outcomes.

To learn more about heart and vascular treatments, visit nm.org/heart.

CHICAGO – Just three weeks before getting married, Annesley Clark (they/them/theirs) had to cancel their wedding. The 33-year-old from Chicago, Ill., had a life-threatening infection and a mass growing on their heart. Clark needed open-heart surgery right away.  

Because of the infection, the risks from surgery increased significantly and their outcome was uncertain. Clark and their partner, Christine Corso (they/them/theirs), were determined to say their vows before it was too late. 

The nursing staff at Northwestern Memorial Hospital had formed a special bond with the couple and despite not having much time, they pulled together a wedding in less than 24 hours.   

“Annesley is one of the most positive people I have ever met and constantly uplifts others,” said Tien Mai, a clinical nurse on 11W Feinberg at Northwestern Memorial. “They asked if it was possible to have a wedding the next day before surgery, and the moment I heard that, I made all the calls necessary. From blowing up balloons at the nurses' station to safely preparing them to walk down the aisle, my whole team made all the details perfect. Seeing Annesley smile as they walked down the aisle was the best feeling.” 

On October 9, one day before heart surgery, the nurses transformed the hospital waiting room into a wedding venue with balloons, decorations, flowers, and a makeshift altar. Clark’s close family, friends, and dozens of hospital staff gathered to celebrate their big day. 

“I am so grateful for the care that I’ve received from these doctors and nurses,” said Clark. “I have spent more than a third of the past 15 months at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. Many of the nurses at our hospital wedding were invited to our planned wedding in November. We’ve built such a great relationship with these people, and I have come to feel so cared for and seen by them. They’ve seen me in times that are really rough and scary, and I’m so glad they got to witness the enormity of the joy today.” 

A race against the clock 

The wedding allowed Clark and Corso to enjoy a few hours of bliss during an otherwise unnerving time. While most couples look ahead to a honeymoon on their wedding night, Clark was preparing for open heart surgery.  

Benjamin Bryner, MD, a cardiac surgeon at Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute, says he normally opts for a minimally invasive way to operate, but in Clark’s case, the mass on their heart was too big. Despite the infection and a suppressed immune system making Clark a poor candidate, open heart surgery was the only option.  

“We wanted to get this mass out as quickly as we could because we were worried about a bloodstream infection,” said Dr. Bryner. “The infection was not going to go away until we got the mass out. We have to try not to disturb other structures, and we don’t want pieces of the mass to break off and get sent to other parts of the body. So, we settled on opening the heart up and taking the mass out directly. The safest way to do that was through cardiopulmonary bypass, which is like a safety net that cardiac surgeons build for themselves. That allowed us to open the heart and salvage all of the blood that was coming out. We could then see this mass really clearly, lift it out of the heart, and then close it back up. Everything went very smoothly just like we had hoped.” 

Clark underwent surgery on October 10 and the mass was successfully removed. They spent a few weeks recovering in the hospital and are now enjoying their new married life with a healing heart.

The newlyweds are looking forward to their first holiday season as a married couple, with a lot to be thankful for.

To learn more about heart surgery and other cardiac treatments, visit nm.org.  

CHICAGO – After serving 21 years in the U.S. Army, Louis Smith’s heart only functioned at 10 percent. The father of three from Country Club Hills, Ill., had been visiting the Advanced Heart Failure Clinic at the Jesse Brown Veterans Affairs Medical Center (JBVA) for about one year before his symptoms suddenly got worse. Just before Thanksgiving 2023, the then 65-year-old was told he needed a new heart.  

Louis was transferred to Northwestern Memorial Hospital where he waited just two weeks for his new heart. Before his transplant surgery on December 31, 2023, he wasn’t nervous, wasn’t scared, but did have one request for his surgeon.  

“Can you do me a favor? When you cut me, can you try to save the tattoo on my chest?” said Smith. “It’s a saying that me and my late father used to say. We would listen to ‘I did it my way’ by Frank Sinatra. That’s our saying. If you can please not destroy the tattoo, I’ll be just fine.” 

Benjamin Bryner, MD, a cardiac surgeon at Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute, made sure both the incision and stiches would preserve every inch of Smith’s tattoo.  

“Mr. Smith had some tattoos that we were eager to save as best we could,” said Dr. Bryner. “There’s no way to do a transplant without leaving a scar behind, but we did our best to make sure the tattoos would at least line up and we were happy with the final results.”

Serving His Country and Needing a New Heart

Smith enlisted in the Army when he was just 17 years old, following in the footsteps of his father. His more than two decades of service took him through tours in Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Germany, and Korea, but feeling his heart begin to fail was something this soldier was not prepared for.  

“I used to wake up every morning around two o’clock,” said Smith. “It felt like somebody was either choking me or standing on my chest. And I couldn’t breathe. It was like somebody just turned off my air.” 

Smith suffered from cardiac amyloidosis, an underdiagnosed disease that causes heart failure. It occurs when protein builds up and is deposited in tissues where it isn’t supposed to be. This can lead to organ damage, notably in the heart. Cardiac amyloidosis impacts up to 25 percent of people over the age of 80, with African American patients at a higher risk.  

During his time in the Army, Smith was active and never had any issues with his health. He was 63 years old by the time he learned about the genetic condition he’s had since birth. Because his case was so advanced, not only did he need a heart transplant, but Sarah Chuzi, MD, a heart failure and heart transplantation specialist at Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute and JBVA, recommended he be moved up on the list.  

“I went to visit him in the hospital and noticed he was short of breath just walking from his bed to the bathroom,” said Dr. Chuzi. “That was so out of character for him, so unlike him. I could tell that he really felt like things were changing rapidly. So, we recommended that he not only be listed for heart transplant but that he be listed at a very high status which gave him priority on the heart transplant list.”

Almost one year later, Smith is doing well and is back to his old routine. He enjoys spending time with his wife of 47 years, Jacquelyn, his three children, six grandchildren, and one great-grandchild. Smith is an avid biker, and often takes cross-country trips with friends on his motorcycle. He’s even taken one trip with his new heart.  

“I’m a soldier and a heart transplant survivor,” said Smith. “And I love my new heart.” 

More about the Advanced Heat Failure Clinic at the Jesse Brown Veterans Affairs Medical Center 

For more than 77 years, Northwestern Medicine has partnered with the Jesse Brown Veterans Affairs Medical Center (JBVA) in Chicago. Medical residents from the hospital system rotate through the VA clinic during their medical training, and it’s the longest-running academic affiliation in the VA system.  

In 2022, Sarah Chuzi, MD, a heart failure and heart transplantation specialist at Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute, established an Advanced Heart Failure Clinic at JBVA. Dr. Chuzi rotated through JBVA during her medical training and since then, she’s dedicated her career to helping veterans.

“The JBVA is very unique,” said Dr. Chuzi. “We serve about 62,000 veterans and about 70 percent of those veterans identify as Black. That is a population that is very underserved for a number of reasons. They face a lot of health barriers but also a lot of structural barriers to health like systemic racism, a lot of trauma, and PTSD. The combination of all these factors really does adversely affect their health.”

The clinic offers evidence-based heart failure care that includes medical therapy, devices, and other diagnostic tests and procedures. Patients from the heart failure clinic are often referred to Northwestern Medicine for specialized surgeries and treatments. Dr. Chuzi and her team will soon participate in heart failure clinical trials out of JBVA, including ones looking at new medications to improve patient outcomes.

To learn more about heart failure treatment options, visit nm.org. 

CHICAGO — Northwestern Memorial Hospital is the first hospital in Illinois and among the first in the country to offer pulsed field ablation, a revolutionary advancement in the field of cardiac electrophysiology. This minimally invasive approach to treating atrial fibrillation (AFib) offers patients improved safety and efficacy compared to traditional therapies. The procedure occurred on Tuesday, March 5. 

“Pulsed field ablation is an exciting advancement in the treatment of AFib because it’s very fast and very effective,” says Bradley Knight, MD, medical director of cardiac electrophysiology at Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute . “This approach allows us to deliver very high voltage, very brief electrical shocks to ablate the tissue causing the arrythmia. It seems to be very selective for this tissue, so that it avoids injury to structures behind there, like the esophagus, the phrenic nerve, the lung tissue and other organs very close to that tissue.”

Atrial fibrillation (AFib) is the most common type of heart arrythmia impacting up to 5 million people in the United States, a number that is anticipated to reach 12.1 million by 2030.

“There’s really an epidemic of atrial fibrillation worldwide because aging is one of the causes of the condition,” says Dr. Knight. “Obesity is another common cause, so with these epidemics themselves, AFib is increasingly common.”

The heart rhythm disorder is characterized by fast and irregular heartbeats, or arrythmias, from the upper chambers of the heart. AFib can significantly impact patients' quality of life and increase the risk of stroke, blood clots and other complications. Symptoms include can lead to a variety of symptoms include shortness of breath, chest pain, fatigue and heart palpitations.

“Patients who are symptomatic and have recurrent episodes of atrial fibrillation that cannot be controlled with medications are good candidates for pulsed field ablation,” says Dr. Knight. “This new energy source may allow us to not only do the procedure more quickly, more safely, and more effectively, it may also allow us to ablate a more extensive area in the atrium then we can currently do with thermal energy sources.”

Unlike conventional catheter ablation techniques that use heat or cold to create scar tissue and disrupt abnormal electrical signals in the heart, pulsed field ablation delivers precisely controlled electric fields to target and ablate tissue responsible for AFib. This innovative approach offers several potential advantages, including reduced risk of complications, shorter procedure times, and improved outcomes for patients.

The approach was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in January after extensive clinical trials. Northwestern Medicine participated in two of the clinical trials that lead to FDA approval.

"We are thrilled to be the first hospital in Illinois to offer pulsed field ablation for the treatment of atrial fibrillation and the only Chicago center involved in the research," says Dr. Knight. “This innovative technology represents a significant advancement in the field of electrophysiology and underscores our commitment to providing the highest standard of care to individuals living with AFib."

While pulsed field ablation might not be the right choice for every patient, the Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute’s Center for Heart Rhythm Disorders offers a comprehensive range of therapies for AFib and other arrythmias. For more information, visit heart.nm.org.

B-ROLL/SOUNDBITES/PHOTOS: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/pdtsa2752cxv74liba534/h?rlkey=ddqze6m5gw1ge97r4kud5ao65&dl=0.

It’s tough to keep up with Chaplain Patricia Handley as she navigates the hallways of Northwestern Medicine Lake Forest Hospital keeping an eye out for anyone who might need a little support. In between visiting patients who have requested a chaplain or in need of palliative care, the spry 85-year-old is quick to ask a passing nurse about her son’s recent wedding, then reaches out to another staff member who just needed a hug.

However, last spring, Handley found herself in need of some support. She was out of breath and slowing down. Testing revealed a previously repaired mitral valve was leaking.

“Pat is a huge part of what makes Lake Forest Hospital a special place. We lean on her a lot,” said Micah J. Eimer MD, cardiologist at Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute and associate chief medical officer at Northwestern Medicine. “She is usually sprinting around the hospital, but when she began huffing and puffing, I knew something wasn’t right.”

The mitral valve is one of the four valves in the heart that helps to control the flow of blood throughout the body. When the valve does not close completely, blood flows backward, making the heart work harder than it should.

“Pat had her mitral valve replaced 12 years ago and it would be risky to perform another open-heart surgery,” said Dr. Eimer. “Instead, she was a great candidate for a minimally invasive procedure to place a new valve inside the old one.”

Interventional cardiologists Charles J. Davidson, MD, and Laura Davidson, MD, performed the percutaneous valve replacement at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. The valve is compressed and advanced by a catheter through an artery in the leg until it reaches the diseased valve in the heart. A balloon on the catheter expands to secure the new valve in place taking over the job of regulating blood flow.

Handley was discharged the next day and has spent the last several months rebuilding her strength and stamina by doing cardiac rehab several times a week at Northwestern Medicine Grayslake. Now, she back up to well over 12,000 steps a day.

“I had no stamina, and it was frustrating because I like to move fast,” said Handley. “Slowly and surely my energy came back, and I felt like I found a lost part of me.”

While Handley doesn’t often refer to her personal life when providing emotional, spiritual and religious support to others, her recent experience as a patient has helped inform what she does as a chaplain.

“We are always learning from our experiences. Step out of the stream and back in the next day. You never step in the same place,” said Handley. “I have just a short time to build relationships with patients, but they can sense I have experienced a lot of life and that brings a credibility beyond words while also creating comfort.”

Handley is a former nurse with a background in pediatric, public health and psychiatric nursing. She raised three children and now has nine grandchildren. Her own faith journey led her to chaplaincy. She has a Master of Divinity degree from Yale and while in seminary felt a pull to the ordained ministry.

“I still remember the first patient during my internship. I pulled up a chair to listen and suddenly realized there was an internal tension I was enjoying,” said Handley. “The nurse in me was saying get busy, take a temperature. But I was just sitting and talking and doing what I could never really do as a nurse.”

Dr. Eimer says he understands that tension and that is why he admires Pat and sees her and all the chaplains as true partners.

“There is that moment in taking care of patients where I wish I could be like Pat,” said Dr. Eimer. “You have done everything you can in the physical world and you want to provide reassurance for the soul. That is what Pat does incredibly well. She is an inspiration.”

Anchored by Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute is a destination for those requiring highly specialized heart and vascular care. In 2023-24, U.S. News & World Report named the Northwestern Memorial Hospital cardiology, heart & vascular surgery program a top ten program in the nation (No. 7) and the highest ranked program in Illinois for 16 consecutive years.

A typical resting heart rate for an adult is 60 to 100 beats per minute. Beth Jones’ heart rate would soar to 180 beats per minute and stay that high for hours, even while just sitting on the couch. The school administrator from St. Charles was suffering from atrial fibrillation. A tag-team approach by a cardiac surgeon and a cardiac electrophysiologist at the Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute created scars on her heart to return it to a normal rhythm.

During atrial fibrillation (Afib) the upper chambers of the heart, the atria, are not contracting normally due to irregular signals in the conduction system. Instead, the atria quiver, decreasing the amount of blood ejected from the heart with each heartbeat.

“One of the major concerns addressed when a patient is initially diagnosed with atrial fibrillation is the five-fold increased risk of stroke, particularly debilitating strokes,” said Jessica Delaney, MD, cardiac electrophysiology at Northwestern Medicine Central DuPage Hospital and Northwestern Medicine Delnor Hospital. “In addition, if a patient’s heart rate remains elevated, over time this can increase the risk for developing congestive heart failure.”

Many people with Afib never have symptoms. But others may experience a frightening mix of rapid, pounding heartbeat, along with dizziness, fatigue, trouble breathing and tightness in the chest.

“I was working out on a treadmill and my heart rate hit 236. I switched to another machine thinking it was broken, and it showed the same high heart rate,” said Jones. “I thought I was going to die right there at the fitness center.”

Jones was treated with medications, often the first line of defense in Afib. However, drugs are not a cure and some patients, like Jones, need additional treatment. Jones first underwent a catheter ablation at Northwestern Medicine Central DuPage Hospital.

During treatment, a small, flexible tube is inserted through veins in the groin, and directed to the area of the heart generating the abnormal signals. The tissue can be burned using radiofrequency or frozen with cryoablation.

“For some patients, ablation on the inside wall of the heart is not enough to control the atrial fibrillation and further ablation is needed on the outer side,” said Dr. Delaney. “The most common reasons for this are thickened heart muscle, anatomy limiting completeness of the inside ablation, or a prolonged duration of atrial fibrillation prior to the ablation.”

To fully disrupt the pathways, Jones needed the expertise of both a cardiac electrophysiologist and a cardiac surgeon.  The team at Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute is collaborating on a “one-two punch” to eliminate her atrial fibrillation.

In November, Jones underwent a total thoracoscopic modified maze (TT-maze) procedure at Northwestern Medicine Palos Hospital. Unlike the classic maze, which is an open-heart procedure, the TT-maze is done minimally invasively through small incisions.

“We deflate one lung at a time to access the heart through three incisions on each side,” said Andrei Churyla, MD, cardiac surgeon, Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute at Palos Hospital. “Using radiofrequency instruments, we create a special maze pattern on the surface of the heart to disrupt the irregular flow of electricity.”

The left atrial appendage, a pocket-like section in the left atrium, is also closed to reduce a common source of blood clot formation that increases stroke risk. A few months after the TT-maze, Dr. Delaney performed a catheter ablation inside the heart to complete the connection with the surface scars.

“With the minimally invasive approach, we don’t make a big incision in the chest, we avoid a heart lung machine, and patients can return to their lives much sooner,” said Dr. Churyla.

Jones says she could feel the difference immediately.

“The Afib was really depressing. I felt like I was working out for 15 hours a day. I was constantly exhausted and afraid because my father had a stroke and passed away in his 60s,” said Jones. “Dr. Delaney and Dr. Churlya gave me my life back. I’m exercising, traveling and back at work.”

Andrew DeLuca woke up with back pain a day after moving an air conditioner unit. Within hours he was close to death. The 82-year-old from Tinley Park didn’t realize he had a ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA), a condition with a survival rate of only 15%. His family rushed him to Northwestern Medicine Palos Hospital, where a surgical team was prepared for this complex emergency.

The abdominal aorta, which is about the size of a garden hose, carries blood away from the heart to lower parts of the body. The vessel can weaken and bulge, and if left untreated, the aneurysm can burst.

According to the American Heart Association’s 2023 statistics, there were 150,000 global deaths attributable to aortic aneurysms in 2020, a 26% increase from 2010.

“Blood was pouring from Mr. DeLuca’s aorta into the free space inside the belly. He was dying in front of us,” said Gabriel Wallace, MD, board certified vascular surgeon and director of vascular surgery at Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute at Palos Hospital. “He needed immediate surgery.”

Dr. Wallace had developed a streamlined protocol for this type of emergency. When an aortic rupture is diagnosed, Dr. Wallace sends a text to the operating room team, and they have all the necessary equipment for minimally invasive treatment already in a bag for quick deployment.

“Rapid treatment is the difference between life and death. 85% percent of people with an aortic rupture will die with 50% not even making it to the hospital,” said Dr. Wallace.

Without opening Mr. DeLuca’s chest, Dr. Wallace stopped the bleeding and repaired the aorta using a minimally invasive technique called endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR). During the procedure, a small flexible tube called a catheter is inserted through a small incision in the groin up to the aorta using x-ray guidance. Often, the patient does not even require general anesthesia.

After an occlusion balloon in inserted to stop the bleeding from the inside, Dr. Wallace inserts a stent graft, a tube made of thin metal mesh covered with a thin polyester fabric. When the stent graft reaches the aorta, it is opened and fastened into place to reline and repair the aorta wall, stop the internal bleeding, and restore blood flow.

“It all came on so suddenly. We just thought it was back pain. We had no idea it was related to his heart,” said Carol DeLuca, Andrew’s wife. “Andrew is doing well and with daily exercise he has continued to improve his health and regain his quality of life. He is looking forward to golfing once the weather warms up.”

Men are more likely than women to have an abdominal aortic aneurysm. Risk factors include smoking, high blood pressure, family history and age. Men 55 to 75 years old who have ever smoked should get an ultrasound screening for abdominal aortic aneurysms.

"If we know about an aneurysm before it ruptures, we can often treat it and have the patient go home the next day,” said Dr. Wallace. “There are usually no symptoms until it may be too late, so that is why screening is so important.”

Northwestern Medicine recently developed an AAA self-referral program for patients who have seen a Northwestern Medicine primary care physician within 3 years. Patients who meet the screening criteria can self-schedule through their MyNM account. If patients are outside the criteria, they should discuss screening with their primary care physician. 

AAA screening criteria:

• Men >50 with 1st degree relative with AAA and personal smoking history
• Men >55 with 1st degree relative with AAA, non-smoker
• Men >65 with smoking history
• Women 65-75 with first degree relative with AAA or smoking history

Medicare Part B covers a one-time AAA ultrasound if you are at risk for AAA and receive a referral from your provider. Medicare considers you at risk for AAA if you have a family history of AAA or, you are a man aged 65-75 and have smoked 100 or more cigarettes in your lifetime.

CHICAGO — When Michael DiLillo’s phone rang early on a Saturday morning, he was not prepared for the life-altering news awaiting him on the other end. The previous day he had undergone a series of cardiac tests and now his cardiologist was calling on the weekend.

“We were home babysitting our grandchildren when I saw he was calling. I remember him saying ‘I need to tell you something important. I hope you’re sitting down.’ That’s when I knew we were facing something serious,” recalled DiLillo, 69, a resident of St. Charles, Ill., in Chicago’s western suburbs.

For several months, DiLillo had noticed a slight tightness in his chest. He saw several physicians who told him he was going through the normal process of aging, but he wasn’t convinced.

“I was experiencing some chest issues – not severe or to the point where it limited my activity, but I knew something wasn’t quite right,” said DiLillo, who kept searching for answers. “When I got an appointment with Dr. Severino, he ordered tests and figured it out very quickly.”

When Michael J. Severino, MD, cardiologist at Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute, called DiLillo on that Saturday morning, he informed him that the symptoms were the result of a large mass encroaching into his heart. He told his patient to head to the emergency department quickly to undergo further testing.

“When I saw the test results, I had to take a few minutes and decide how I was going to handle this because it was an earth-shattering result for the patient,” said Dr. Severino, who practices at Northwestern Medicine Central DuPage Hospital and Northwestern Medicine Delnor Hospital. “I’ve been in practice almost 30 years and I’ve never seen this type of tumor in this location.”

The tumor was growing into and causing damage to DiLillo’s heart. Treatment would require extensive surgery to not only remove the mass, but to also repair the damage to his heart. He consulted with surgeons at multiple hospitals, but none were willing to take on the surgery because of its complexity and risk.

“No one wanted to the do the surgery because they thought it was too risky. One surgeon said, ‘I can’t tell you with a clear conscience that you’ll survive surgery,’” said DiLillo. “I was scared beyond belief. I told [my wife] Marianne that we needed to put our financial house in order. I thought I was going to die.”

That was until he got to Northwestern Memorial Hospital. DiLillo first saw Samuel S. Kim, MD, thoracic surgeon at Canning Thoracic Institute, who brought his case to the hospital’s tumor board, a multidisciplinary team of experts who meet to discuss complex cancer patient cases and determine the best treatment plan.

“The patient was running on borrowed time and surgery was his only option for survival,” explained Dr. Kim. “At Northwestern Medicine, our surgeons are known for taking on the most difficult cases and we knew we had the right team in place to help Michael.”

After discussing DiLillo’s tumor, the tumor board agreed it would require the expertise of a cardiac surgeon given the damage to the heart, which is when Christopher K. Mehta, MD, cardiac surgeon at Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute, was brought into the case.

“I’ve seen a handful of these tumors, and this was by far the most aggressive appearing cancer, especially from what we could tell from the imaging and the echocardiogram,” said Dr. Mehta. “The sheer size of the tumor, which was the size of a football, was causing it to invade the structures of the heart, which made it particularly challenging to deal with.”

Despite the tumor’s size and complexity of the surgery it would require, Dr. Mehta agreed to operate, but warned DiLillo and his family that it would not come without risk.

“The tumor was invading and compressing the pulmonary valve and the pulmonary artery, which move blood from the heart to the lungs,” said Dr. Mehta. “Once we removed the entire tumor, we would then be faced with having to reconstruct the heart in a way that he could live a normal life. It was a very involved surgical case.”

The surgical team operated for 12 hours removing the entire tumor then repairing the damage it caused to the structures of his heart, including rebuilding the pulmonary valve. For DiLillo’s family, the wait was agony.

“My kids were there with me, and we were all scared. It was a rollercoaster. We had ourselves prepared that he wasn’t going to make it,” said Marianne DiLillo, Michael’s wife of 41 years. “When Dr. Mehta came out and said everything went well, we couldn’t believe it. He let us all hug him and was so positive about the surgery but told us the recovery was still going to be a long journey.”

For Dr. Mehta and team, the relief was shared especially after seeing the tumor’s true size once it was removed. The tumor weighed more than 1.5 pounds, which is more than double the weight of the average human heart.

“When we opened Michael’s chest, you couldn’t see his heart because the tumor was so massive. We all breathed a sigh of relief when this surgery was complete,” said Dr. Mehta. “Michael still had a long road ahead of him, but we gave him an opportunity to keep fighting.”

Following surgery, DiLillo remained in the intensive care unit (ICU) for five weeks then transferred to an acute rehab facility for more than two months.

“From the time we had the surgery planned until several weeks after was a blur to me,” said DiLillo. “Having Marianne by my side and making big decisions was insurmountable because I could have never been able to function on my own.”

Primary tumors of the heart are extremely rare with malignant cardiac tumors being even more uncommon. Less than 10% of all primary heart tumors are cancerous affecting approximately 8,000 people worldwide. By comparison, breast cancer impacts more than 240,000 people each year in the United States alone. When cancers do occur in and around the heart, most often the cancer started elsewhere and spread to the heart.

“When the pathologists got back to us about the type of tumor, they were very surprised to find that it was a liposarcoma, which is a rare type of cancer that starts in soft tissues,” said Dr. Mehta. “While Michael previously had a liposarcoma in his leg more than ten years earlier, the pathologist felt this was a primary tumor meaning it had started in the chest and then invaded into the heart. These represent about one percent of cancers of the heart, so it’s a very rare diagnosis.”

While DiLillo’s recovery has been long and challenging, he continues to grow stronger every day and recently enjoyed celebrating his first Christmas since the surgery with Marianne, their three grown children and their spouses and five grandchildren with number six on the way in March.

“You get a whole new perspective in how important every day is – you don’t want to waste time, you don’t know how much time you have,” said DiLillo when reflecting on the surgery and his recovery. “I have a second lease on life. I feel blessed that we found the right people who could help us. Dr. Severino found it when others said I was fine. Dr. Mehta took it on when others said, ‘I can’t help you.’ Northwestern saved my life.”

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Cardiac MRI is now available at Northwestern Medicine Palos Hospital. The versatile tool is used to diagnose many cardiac conditions and is the best test available to understand in full detail the structure of the heart.

Northwestern Medicine’s imaging systems are fully integrated across the health system’s campuses. This allows radiologists practicing at Northwestern Medicine Palos Hospital to easily collaborate electronically with colleagues across the health network, including downtown at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.

“World-class researchers in cardiac MRI at Northwestern Medicine work hard every day to advance the field so that patients can benefit from more accurate diagnosis, which leads to better treatments,” said R. Kannan Mutharasan, MD, medical director of the Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute at Palos Hospital.

Dr. Mutharasan and Bradley Allen, MD, MS, chief of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Imaging at Northwestern Medicine, answer some common questions about cardiac MRI.

Why would a cardiologist order a cardiac MRI?

Cardiac MRI can test for multiple indications including evaluation of heart failure, potential cardiac masses, valve disease, a blood clot in the heart, or acute cardiac injury such as myocarditis. It can also be used as part of an arrythmia work-up or treatment planning prior to ablations.

What information can a cardiac MRI reveal that other testing may not?

“Cardiac MRI is considered the gold-standard for evaluation of heart size and function. In addition, MRI is excellent at tissue characterization and can provide information about scar or inflammation to the heart muscle,” said Dr. Allen.

More advanced types of MRI like stress perfusion can help determine if there is reduced blood flow to the heart, while a special type of MRI called phase contrast imaging can visualize and measure blood flow and velocity. This information can diagnose various conditions like heart attack, myocarditis, or heart valve disease; while also helping to estimate risk and potential success of various treatment strategies.

“Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a genetic condition that affects up to 1 in 500 individuals, is a good example of a condition that a cardiac MRI may pick up, but a more routine cardiac test like an echocardiogram may miss,” said Dr. Mutharasan. “Understanding whether someone has hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is important because not only does it affect the individual patient, but it may impact the health of family members who may have the condition but not realize it.”

How does the test work? How long does it take?

MRI generates images using a very strong magnetic field. Patients lie flat and are placed in the center of the MRI scanner which looks like a round tube. A special piece of equipment called a coil is placed on their chest.

“The MRI machine makes many loud sounds and vibrations which is the machine producing small magnetic field changes within the patients. The coil on the chest functions like an antenna which receives the magnetic signals coming from the patient,” said Dr. Allen.

These signals are sent to a computer where they are used to build an image of the part of the body being scanned. The images are then reviewed by a cardiac imaging expert. Most cardiac MRIs require intravenous injection of gadolinium contrast agent. The test takes 60-90 minutes to complete.

Are there any risks?

Because the MRI machine uses very strong magnets, patients cannot bring anything metal into the scanner. All patients will be screened for metal implants or other metal objects that could be unsafe in the scanner. Patients with ICD or pacemakers usually can undergo MRI but require special settings to be used on their device. There is no ionizing radiation associated with MRI so pregnant women can undergo MRI safely but cannot receive gadolinium. Patients with poor kidney function may not be eligible to receive gadolinium.

What is new in the world of cardiac MRI?

“Cardiac MRI is a very exciting research space. Some work is focused on how to make the imaging faster so the studies can be completed in 30 minutes or less,” said Dr. Allen. “Additional work has focused on how our ability to characterize changes in the heart tissue can help better define patient diagnoses and risk in diseases like cardiac amyloidosis and in patients with heart transplant.”

Evaluating cardiac blood flow is another area of expertise at Northwestern Medicine using a tool called 4D flow MRI. Machine learning and artificial intelligence is starting to significantly impact cardiac MRI in a whole range of applications including imaging the patient, performing analysis and quantification, and generating reports.

When should I ask my doctor about cardiac MRI?

The role of Cardiac MRI should be discussed with your cardiologist and is especially indicated if the underlying cardiac disease or extent of disease is not clear after evaluation with other diagnostic tools such as echocardiography.

To make a cardiology appointment at Northwestern Medicine Palos Hospital, please call 708-923-4200 or visit heart.nm.org.

Anchored by Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute is a destination for those requiring highly specialized heart and vascular care. In 2023-24, U.S. News & World Report named the Northwestern Memorial Hospital cardiology, heart & vascular surgery program a top ten program in the nation (No. 7) and the highest ranked program in Illinois for 16 consecutive years.

After completing boot camp at Naval Station Great Lakes in North Chicago, Ill., Patterson was stationed at the Naval Air Station in Alameda, Calif. With three western Pacific tours on the USS Carl Vinson, Patterson had the unique experience of living on an aircraft carrier while visiting more places in four years than many people visit in a lifetime.

“I’m very proud of my time in the Navy and very thankful for the experiences it gave me,” said Patterson, who now lives in Park Forest, Illinois. “Those tours gave me the opportunity to see the world. We went everywhere from Hawaii to Australia, Singapore, the Philippines and more. It was like a dream vacation while living on a city at sea.”

When Patterson discharged from the Navy, he returned to California for 10 years before returning to federal service taking a role with the United States Postal Service (USPS). He worked for USPS for nearly 25 years when he was offered a promotion that would bring him to Minnesota. A year and half after his move, Patterson started to notice changes in his health.

“It came on very suddenly. I was working in the mailroom and started feeling short of breath when walking just short distances from one side of the room to the other. I knew something was wrong,” said Patterson, who left work and drove to the nearest urgent care clinic.  

After being told he needed a higher level of care, Patterson drove himself to the emergency department at the nearest academic medical center in Minneapolis. He would not see the outside of a hospital again for three weeks.

“I lost consciousness in the ER that night and when I woke up the next morning, they told me I had 13 TIAs, or miniature strokes, overnight,” said Patterson. “The doctors told me that these were warning signs and the big one will come if I didn’t seek treatment immediately.”

Patterson’s health continued to decline, and he spent the next two months in and out of the hospital. He was soon diagnosed as being in congestive heart failure (CHF) with his heart functioning at less than five percent. His best option for survival would be a heart transplant or left ventricular assist device (LVAD).

He made the decision to return to Chicago where he had family support from his sister. They drove from Minnesota directly to Jesse Brown VA Medical Center where he would meet Sarah E. Chuzi, MD, cardiologist at Jesse Brown VA Medical Center and at Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute, who had recently established an onsite advanced heart failure clinic for veterans at Jesse Brown. Patterson would be in and out of the hospital for the next three months while his medical team assessed his condition.

“Dwayne got sick very quickly. When I first saw him in clinic, he could barely get onto the exam table without shortness of breath,” said Dr. Chuzi, who first began caring for patients at Jesse Brown VA during her medical residency. “If you have taken care of a veteran, or met a veteran, you know that they are very stoic, and they are unlikely to complain. So, I knew, just looking in his eyes, that he was very sick and really scared and that he needed an intervention quickly.”

Dr. Chuzi and a multidisciplinary team of Northwestern Medicine and VA clinicians began the process of evaluating Patterson for a heart transplant. They soon determined that he was likely to benefit, so he was added to the heart transplant waiting list in March. Patterson was too sick to go home, so he was admitted to Northwestern Memorial Hospital to wait for a donor heart, which came in April 2023.

“I remember the day the call came. I was in the hospital and not feeling well, then they told me, ‘We found you a heart and we want to schedule surgery,’” recalls Patterson. “You know, I never feared. I’m a man of faith, which guided me. The sickness had just come on so fast. But I knew I had the best medical team at one of the best hospitals for a heart transplant and at the VA. I was ready.”

The advanced heart failure collaboration between Northwestern Medicine and Jesse Brown VA Medical Center is a continuation of a longstanding relationship between the two organizations. For more than 77 years, medical residents from Northwestern have rotated through the VA during their medical training, the longest of such academic affiliation in the VA system.

“The VA system has been involved in the training of two thirds of the physicians in the United States and the partnership between Jesse Brown and Northwestern is where this all began,” said Sarah Unterman, MD, Chief of Staff at  Jesse Brown VA Medical Center. “Dwayne’s experience and the collaboration between our VA clinicians and the Northwestern Medicine teams exemplifies the value that these partnerships bring to our veterans and to the physicians who are so privileged to care for them.”

Dr. Chuzi credits her medical training at Jesse Brown as the inspiration for wanting to dedicate her career to caring for veterans.

“The VA has always had a special place in my heart. Mainly because of the patients, the veterans,” said Dr. Chuzi, who has veterans in her family. “They are so resilient and strong, and they have served our country. They are incredibly deserving of good care.”

The veteran patient population faces many health care challenges due to social determinants of health, such as lack of access to transportation, neighborhood crime, financial insecurity, and housing instability, which can have a negative impact on their health. They are also a patient population with high rates of risk factors for heart failure such as diabetes, hypertension and obesity.

“Heart failure in general is extremely burdensome to the population at large, but especially to our veterans because these risk factors for heart failure are so prevalent,” said Dr. Chuzi. “This is a population where there is a ton of advanced disease, but if you don’t have someone necessarily who is specifically trained in looking for patients with this disease, you might not find it. We’re hopeful that our program will help more veterans get the advanced treatments they need.”

In less than a year, more than 10 patients have been referred to Northwestern Medicine from the Jesse Brown VA for advanced heart failure surgical therapies, with eight patients receiving LVADs in just six months.

While Patterson faced some initial challenges adapting to life with his new heart, today he is feeling better than he has in years. He has since retired from the postal service and enjoying time reconnecting with his friends and family in the Chicago area. His heart donor and their family are never far from his mind.

“Like my sister says, someone died for you to live. So, I always had to keep that in the back of my mind,” said Patterson. “I would just say thank you for this blessing. I have a second chance at life now.”

Published in JTCVS Open, the Acupuncture After Heart Surgery (ACU-Heart) study found that acupuncture is practical, well-tolerated and has clinical benefit for patients who have undergone heart valve surgery, including lower rates of post-operative atrial fibrillation (POAF).

“Heart surgery is a lifesaving procedure, but it can contribute to physical discomfort and surgical side effects like atrial fibrillation (irregular heartbeat), while also having a psychological impact on the patient” says lead investigator, Kim L. Feingold, PhD, a cardiac psychologist and the founder and director of Cardiac Behavioral Medicine at the Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. “We know that the mind and body are connected, so we’re always looking for ways to improve the patient experience and reduce the emotional consequences of heart disease, which can include depression and anxiety.”

Acupuncture is a component of traditional Chinese medicine that has been used for more than 2,500 years and is believed to stimulate the nervous system. The practice involves inserting thin needles through the skin at specific points along the body to influence the flow of energy and promote healing. Acupuncture has been shown to have pain-relieving, anti-inflammatory and anti-nausea effects.

In the ACU-Heart pilot trial, consenting patients undergoing valve surgery with no prior history of atrial fibrillation (AFib), were randomly sorted into two groups. One group received standard care after surgery and the other received daily acupuncture intervention from the day after surgery until discharge.

“The acupuncture was delivered to each patient in their hospital room by a licensed acupuncturist from Northwestern Medicine Osher Center for Integrative Health,” explains Dr. Feingold. “The acupuncturists coordinated timing with patients and medical providers to ensure that acupuncture was not disruptive to routine medical care.”

Dr. Feingold says that she and fellow researchers wanted to answer three main questions with the ACU-Heart study:

1. Would patients embrace acupuncture during such a significant event as heart surgery?
2. Is it logistically feasible in a cardiac surgery setting to provide daily acupuncture to patients? 
3. Does acupuncture impact medical outcomes such as AFib and post-surgical symptoms such as pain, nausea, stress and anxiety?

The findings were positive on all three fronts.

“We learned that acupuncture after open heart surgery is feasible in this fast-paced environment — even in the intensive care unit the day after surgery — and was well tolerated by patients with no adverse effects,” says Dr. Feingold. “The majority of patients had no prior history with acupuncture, demonstrating their openness to receive integrative therapies after surgery. Overall, patients reported that it was a pleasant and positive aspect of their cardiovascular surgery recovery.”

She notes that some of the nurses commented that patients were more relaxed and calmer after acupuncture. “In a future study, we can fold in measuring the impact that acupuncture intervention has on the care team,” says Dr. Feingold.

From the study, the research team found that acupuncture after heart surgery was linked to:

• Lower rates of post-operative atrial fibrillation (POAF) by 58%. Patients in the study who received acupuncture had a 14% incidence of POAF compared with 33% in the standard control group.
• Reduced pain, nausea, stress and anxiety. Based on patient reporting, these surgical side effects were reduced with each acupuncture session.
• Less time spent in intensive care. Patients who received acupuncture spent about seven fewer hours in the intensive care unit than study participants who didn’t receive acupuncture.
• A reduced need for antiarrhythmic medication at the time of discharge by 68%. Approximately 10% of patients who received acupuncture were on a heart rhythm medication (amiodarone) at the time of discharge compared to 27% in the standard control group. 

“Atrial fibrillation is the most common arrhythmia impacting patients after heart surgery and comes with the increased risk of stroke, heart failure and abnormal blood pressure. Managing Afib and other postoperative symptoms is a key to achieving good outcomes in cardiac surgery,” says co-investigator Patrick M. McCarthy, MD, cardiac surgeon and executive director of the Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute. “While this is a small study, it shows significant promise and we’re excited by the idea that there’s a potential intervention that’s inexpensive, accessible, low risk and it’s well-tolerated by patients.”

Dr. Feingold and Dr. McCarthy agree that a larger, multicenter trial with patients undergoing a broader range of heart procedures is needed to better understand the impact of acupuncture on the severity and timing of POAF, as well as the post-operative physical and emotional symptoms such as pain, nausea, depression and anxiety.

“It's exciting to demonstrate the potential role of integrative therapies like acupuncture in the cardiovascular setting — including after cardiac surgery,” says Dr. Feingold. “There's more to be done, but the ACU-Heart pilot trial certainly demonstrates significant promise.”

The study was funded through a philanthropic gift from the Malkin Family Foundation and approved by the Northwestern University Institutional Review Board (#STU00201408).

B-ROLL, SOUNDBITES & PHOTOS: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/wl524jvxceyuhcil88lvw/h?rlkey=3l4e4uhrl67ufqdstpy4r1owi&dl=0

STUDY LINK: Acupuncture after valve surgery is feasible and shows promise in reducing postoperative atrial fibrillation: The ACU-Heart pilot trial - JTCVS Open

CHICAGO -  With a demanding and stressful job, Alex McKeown made exercise a priority for his health. The 33-year-old works in investing, where he negotiates and closes deals for large retail companies. On average, McKeown was working 65 to 70 hours per week, until a routine trip to the gym changed everything.  

On May 9, McKeown was participating in a workout class at a downtown Chicago fitness center when he started feeling lightheaded, hot and sweaty. He sat down on the floor, and the fitness instructor offered McKeown water and orange juice. By the time paramedics arrived and determined he should go to the hospital, McKeown was losing control of his left arm and left leg and couldn’t stand up on his own.

“I originally told myself to just push through it, but I had two women around me – the fitness instructor and another employee – and I’m so thankful they were there and kept a watchful eye on me, because they called 911,” said McKeown. “Without them, I likely would have gone home to sleep it off, and I probably wouldn’t be talking or walking right now.”

McKeown was rushed via ambulance to Northwestern Memorial Hospital where a CT scan confirmed he was having a stroke. Even while he was in the emergency department, McKeown tried taking a work call about an impending deal he was negotiating.

“I told the medical team, ‘One second – I need to take this call.’ When they realized it wasn’t important, they told me, ‘You’re having a stroke, you need to get off the phone.’”

McKeown was taken into emergency surgery where Ali Shaibani, MD, chief of neurointerventional radiology at Northwestern Medicine, performed a minimally invasive procedure called a thrombectomy to remove a blood clot blocking blood flow into the right side of McKeown’s brain and quickly restore circulation. McKeown’s brain function returned to normal immediately after the procedure. Six days after his stroke, McKeown was discharged from Northwestern Memorial with a new lease on life, and new learnings about his health.

“Alex’s case is remarkable because we typically don’t see strokes in his age group,” said Dr. Shaibani. “You lose about 1.9 million brain cells per minute with a stroke, so we moved very quickly to clear out a large blood clot that was blocking his artery. Additionally, Alex was found to have some cardiac issues and a dilated aorta. So, this plugged him into care that he may not have otherwise received for these other conditions.”

“During his stroke workup, Alex was found to have an aortic root aneurysm and a bicuspid aortic valve (BAV), which affects about 1% of the population. We have already scheduled him for surgery to address this life-threatening condition,” said Chris Mehta, MD, cardiac surgeon at Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute.  

BAV, the most common congenital heart disorder, is twice as likely to occur in men than women. While the cause of BAV is unclear, experts believe that it develops in the earliest stages of pregnancy and can be hereditary. Like McKeown, many patients with BAV have an enlargement of the aorta, the major blood vessel that carries blood from the heart to the rest of the body. If left untreated, the aneurysm can enlarge to the point of rupture. 

McKeown had open heart surgery this summer with S. Christopher Malaisrie, MD, director of the comprehensive center for aortic disease at the Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute, a national destination for BAV treatment, and the source of the stroke was determined.

“Alex's aortic valve was congenitally abnormal and he had a very rare malformation called unicuspid aortic valve. The valve had a mass that was likely the cause of his stroke. The valve was not repairable as originally planned, so I did a Ross procedure for him, where we give patients a new heart valve using parts of their own body," said Dr. Malaisrie.

McKeown is now being treated by a comprehensive care team at Northwestern Medicine. He started drinking more water, eating more vegetables and established a healthier work-life balance by slowing down and taking more breaks. He even returned to the gym and is regaining his strength and momentum. 

“People think, this won’t happen to me, but guess what? I thought that too,” said McKeown. “The biggest lesson I learned from this experience is that if you think something is wrong, seek medical attention right away. Trust me, it’s worth it. If it wasn’t for the fitness staff at Studio Three – River North, and my incredible care team at Northwestern Medicine, I wouldn’t be here today.”

“It’s important to get your annual checkups. If your doctor hears a heart murmur, that should be followed up with an echocardiogram. If someone else in the family has bicuspid aortic valve, that’s also an indication to get further cardiac workup,” said Dr. Malaisrie.

“The important message here is that it’s almost never normal to not be able to move your arm, move your leg, or have a facial droop or vision problems. You should never ignore it,” said Dr. Shaibani. “Alex likely wouldn’t have made what is essentially a normal, neurologic recovery if he hadn’t made it to the hospital and been treated so quickly.”

For more information about Northwestern Medicine’s neurology and cardiovascular programs, visit nm.org.

GENEVA, Ill. - Just a few days before Christmas 2021, Aleida Vekony fell to her kitchen floor in Geneva, Ill.  Her husband Jeff found her unconscious and performed CPR until paramedics arrived. Aleida had suffered a massive heart attack. Little did Jeff know that action would also save his life.

Aleida was rushed to Northwestern Medicine Delnor Hospital where doctors discovered she had severe coronary artery disease. Her heart could no longer pump enough blood to the rest of her body. Due to the complexity of her case, she was transferred to Northwestern Medicine Central DuPage Hospital in nearby Winfield, Ill.

“Aleida’s case was dramatic. Her arteries were blocked and rock solid due to calcium and plaque. It was impossible to sew a stitch through them for bypass surgery,” said Gyu Gang, MD, chief of cardiac surgery at Northwestern Medicine Central DuPage Hospital. “She required a coronary endarterectomy where you shell out the artery. Not many surgeons will attempt that during a bypass surgery.”

Not long after Aleida’s surgery on February 28, 2022, Jeff decided he should get his heart checked. Testing revealed he needed a quadruple bypass for a major blockage in his heart.   

“I saved her life with CPR, then she saved mine,” said Jeff. “With what she went through, I was motivated to make sure I was OK. I was shocked by the results of my stress test and thank goodness I had it done.”

Dr. Gang also performed Jeff’s surgery. After a couple of months of recovery, the couple completed cardiac rehabilitation together at Northwestern Medicine Delnor Hospital. 

While Aleida would never wish heart problems on her husband, she says it is amazing to have him by her side during cardiac rehab. 

“He motivates me because he is so driven,” said Aleida. “We are really lucky that Dr. Gang took care of us both. He saved our lives.

CHICAGO -  After his second cardiac event in five years, Joseph Mulligan was not surprised when his Northwestern Medicine cardiologist, James Flaherty MD, recommended an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) as a safeguard to help keep him alive if he were to have a sudden cardiac arrest. At 84 years old, the resident of South Bend, Ind., knew many people with pacemakers and expected, like his friends, he would need a traditional transvenous defibrillator implant with thin wires (leads) threaded directly into his heart and veins to deliver electric therapy to his heart if needed.

Then his medical team presented him with a unique option – Mulligan was a candidate for a clinical trial to test the safety and efficacy of a first-of-its-kind extravascular implantable cardioverter defibrillator (EV ICD). The Medtronic EV ICD is designed to treat dangerously fast heart rhythms that can lead to sudden cardiac arrest, while avoiding certain risks of traditional, transvenous ICDs.

“The EV-ICD involves placement of a special lead that is tunneled under the sternum, so that the lead is not in the heart, but is very close to the outside of the heart,” says Bradley P. Knight, MD, medical director of electrophysiology at Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute. “This allows for lower energy and smaller battery requirements to defibrillate the heart in the event of a cardiac arrest and for pacing of the heart to treat slow heart rates or to terminate fast ventricular tachycardias.”

Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute was the only site in Chicago and one of only 46 sites worldwide to participate in a pivotal study of the device. The results of the trial were presented at the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress 2022 in Barcelona and published in The New England Journal of Medicine.

Worldwide, hundreds of thousands of ICDs are implanted in patients every year to treat dangerously fast heart rhythms. With traditional transvenous defibrillators, the lead is inserted through a vein and attached to the heart leaving the lead under constant stress from the heart beating and movement of the upper body, potentially causing breakage of the lead or blockage of the vein. A totally subcutaneous defibrillator is currently available as an alternative to a transvenous defibrillator, but the device is very large and is unable to pace the heart. The goal of the EV ICD system is to provide the benefits of current transvenous ICDs, but with a smaller device, greater device longevity and without placing leads in the heart or vasculature.

“By positioning the leads outside of the heart, there is less risk of long-term complications associated with leads in the heart and veins, such as the narrowing, blockage or compression of a vein and risks for blood infection,” says Dr. Knight, a co-author on the study.

The EV ICD Pivotal study enrolled 356 patients in 17 countries across North America, Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Australia and New Zealand. Participants in the trial, like Mr. Mulligan, received the same therapies provided by traditional ICDs, including defibrillation, anti-tachycardia pacing and back-up pacing therapies, with this single implanted device.

The trial met its primary objectives: defibrillation therapy effectiveness at implant was 98.7%. This reflects a greater defibrillation efficacy for the EV ICD than historical transvenous ICD studies, and comparable efficacy to the subcutaneous ICD despite EV ICD’s smaller device size. The study also exceeded its safety endpoint: at six months, 92.6% of patients were free from major system and/or procedure-related major complications such as hospitalization, system revision, or death.

“The EV-ICD is a revolution in implantable defibrillator technology that addresses the limitations of our existing therapies that have been available for several decades,” says Dr. Knight. “With the promising data from this trial, we have an opportunity to evolve ICD technology in a safe, effective manner and improve this lifesaving therapy.”

For Mulligan, now 86 years old, the option to enroll in the clinical trial is one he is thankful for as he continues to lead a very active life with the EV ICD as a safety net.

“I feel terrific and I’m grateful to have the advantage of having this device, which I know is keeping me alive longer than I should be,” says Mulligan, an alum of Notre Dame who remains active with the university as president of class of ’59 and a member of the Notre Dame community choir. “The whole process was very easy – I was only hospitalized overnight, and my scar has already almost completely disappeared.”

Worldwide, the EV ICD system is investigational and not yet approved for sale or distribution. Medtronic has received FDA approval for a Continue Access Study, and patients in the pivotal study will continue to be followed until Medtronic receives regulatory approval for the EV ICD system in the United States. The clinical trial was funded by Medtronic; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT04060680. 

To learn more about cardiovascular clinical trials at Northwestern Medicine, visit the Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute – Clinical Trial Unit.

Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute is an innovative powerhouse in developing the latest, safest advances in cardiovascular care. Anchored in downtown Chicago, it has expanded and integrated into eight Northwestern Medicine hospitals, most recently bringing advanced cardiovascular services to the south suburbs at Northwestern Medicine Palos Hospital. Consistently recognized as one of the top cardiology and cardiac surgery programs in the country, Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute at Northwestern Memorial Hospital is ranked eighth in the country by U.S. News & World Report in the annual “America’s Best Hospitals” rankings. For more information, visit heart.nm.org.

GENEVA, Ill. -  Feeling a little flushed, Sue Burton took her dog for a walk in the brisk December air. Just minutes later, she became dizzy. Eager to return home quickly Burton cut through a neighbor’s yard, but as her vision blurred, she sat down. Fortunately, a neighbor saw Burton and ran to get her husband and call 911. Burton, an outdoorsy and active 68-year-old, had suffered a heart attack.

Burton was rushed to Northwestern Medicine Delnor Hospital where interventional cardiologist William P. Towne, MD, performed an angioplasty on two arteries and placed a coronary stent to hold the artery open.

“I eat healthy and am very active so the furthest thing in my mind was that it had something to do with my heart. I just thought I was a little dizzy,” said Burton. “If I hadn’t sat down in the grass, but managed to get home, I probably wouldn’t have put two and two together and wouldn’t have called 911.”

Experts at Northwestern Medicine say Burton’s husband and neighbor did the right thing by calling 911.

“Timing is everything when it comes to surviving a heart attack. The risk of death and disability increases with every passing minute,” said Nauman Mushtaq, MD, an interventional cardiologist and medical director of the Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute at Delnor Hospital. “The quicker a person can activate Emergency Medical Services, the better the outcome.”

In 2021 and 2022, less than half of patients with chest pain diagnosed as a heart attack came to the Delnor Emergency Department via ambulance. The other half either drove themselves or were driven, which delays diagnosis and rapid treatment.

“Calling 911 will have paramedics to you in minutes, initiating possible lifesaving assessment and treatment. An EKG will be performed quickly and interpreted by medics trained to read EKGs as well transmitted to the Emergency Department’s radio, where an emergency physician will also be reviewing it to confirm if it’s a heart attack caused by a blockage,” said Arthur Proust, MD, EMS medical director for the Southern Fox EMS System and an emergency medicine physician at Northwestern Medicine Delnor Hospital.

Patients who have blocked arteries require immediate intervention to restore blood flow, or the heart muscle begins to die. That may include clot-busting drugs, angioplasty or immediate coronary artery bypass grafting surgery.

When the heart attack call comes in from the paramedics, the cardiac team begins setting up the catheterization lab. When the patient arrives, the clinical team can quickly transport the patient to the lab for a diagnostic angiogram and immediate treatment.

American Heart Association guidelines recommend patients whose heart attacks are caused by blocked arteries receive artery-clearing treatment within 90 minutes of arriving at the hospital.  On average in 2022, Northwestern Medicine Delnor Hospital patients who arrived via ambulance had blood flow re-established in 60 minutes. For those who did not come to the hospital via ambulance, the average was 74 minutes, a 14-minute difference.

“It would be our goal to have everyone who is experiencing possible symptoms of a heart attack to call 911. We know with absolute certainty that will reduce mortality by arriving to the emergency room sooner as our cardiac team simultaneously is being mobilized,” said Dr. Proust.

Symptoms of a heart attack include:

• Breaking out in a cold sweat
• Chest discomfort, which may include pressure or a squeezing pain in the center of the chest, spreading to the neck, shoulder or jaw
• Dizziness
• Nausea
• Shortness of breath, which may occur with or without chest discomfort

As with men, women’s most common heart attack symptom is chest pain, but women often report the symptoms are more subtle. Women are also more likely to experience other symptoms that are typically less associated with heart attack, such as shortness of breath, nausea/vomiting, and back or jaw pain.

“I had zero pain during my heart attack,” said Burton. “If you have in your head that you are only having a heart attack if you have chest-gripping pain, then you are wrong.”

Following her heart procedure, Burton spent a few days in the hospital and now attends cardiac rehabilitation three times a week. She is feeling great and looking forward to a hiking vacation with her husband.

“I can’t tell you how happy I am that someone called 911.”

For more information about cardiovascular services at Northwestern Medicine, visit heart.nm.org.

DEKALB, Ill. - Due to congestive heart failure, 81-year-old Diana Morrasy has experienced some anxiety regarding her health in recent years. Some of that worry has been eased for the Sycamore, Illinois resident, thanks to a remote monitoring system that allows her health care team at the Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute to keep an eye on her vital statistics every day.

Morrasy was the first patient at Northwestern Medicine Kishwaukee Hospital to undergo a procedure to implant a CardioMEMS^TM device. The implant allows remote monitoring of pulmonary artery pressures. Elevation of pulmonary artery pressure can be an early indicator of worsening heart failure. The device is now also available at Northwestern Medicine Delnor Hospital in Geneva, Ill.

“The paperclip-sized device is implanted in the pulmonary artery in a manner similar to a standard right heart catheterization, which is a common procedure performed,” said Christopher J. Berry, MD, interventional cardiologist at Northwestern Medicine Kishwaukee Hospital. “It has been shown to improve quality of life and reduce heart failure readmissions.”

Following the procedure, the patient receives a special pillow that sends readings from the CardioMEMS sensor. The patient must lie down on the pillow for just a few seconds each day. The sensor sends the readings to a team of physicians and advanced practice nurses to review.

Through remote monitoring, the clinical team can detect changes up to 30 days before the patient would experience symptoms and take proactive action to protect the patient’s health and prevent hospitalization.  

“The CardioMEMS device helps us see signs of fluid buildup in the lungs much earlier than the patient or even the doctor can detect. Fluid accumulates when the heart does not relax or contract to pump the blood as well as it should,” said Michelle C. Montpetit, MD, a specialist in advanced heart failure and heart transplantation at Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute. “A patient often can have their medication adjusted without being seen in the office each time.”

Earlier this month, the first CardioMEMs procedure at Northwestern Medicine Delnor Hospital was completed by Nauman Mushtaq, MD, medical director of the Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute at Central DuPage Hospital, Delnor Hospital and Kishwaukee Hospital; and William P. Towne, MD, interventional cardiologist at Delnor Hospital. 

"The ability to remotely monitor and adjust medications allows people to continue to enjoy living at home with no disruption in their lives,” said Dr. Mushtaq.

For Morrasy, the device has given her, and her family, some peace of mind. She says the procedure was not difficult and she makes it a routine to lie on the pillow before making her bed every morning.

“I’m at the point that this is a life-saving device,” said Morrasy. “I’ve had enough heart scares that I was more than willing to do this. I’m looking forward to more good years.”

Previously, local patients had to travel to Northwestern Medicine Central DuPage Hospital in Winfield or Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago for the implant. CardioMEMs is also available at Northwestern Medicine Huntley Hospital, Northwestern Medicine McHenry Hospital, Northwestern Medicine Palos Hospital and Northwestern Medicine Lake Forest Hospital.

To learn more about cardiovascular services at Northwestern Medicine, visit nm.org/heart.

WINFIELD, Ill. - Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute at Central DuPage Hospital kicked off American Heart Month with an exciting milestone -- its 500th transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) procedure. With TAVR, a diseased aortic valve can be replaced using a catheter-based technique instead of open-heart surgery. 

“It is a very proud moment for our TAVR program to have reached the 500th patient milestone. We have continued to provide this service to our patients at Northwestern Medicine Central DuPage Hospital in a safe and efficient manner achieving stellar outcomes in the process,” said Imran N. Ahmad, MD, interventional cardiologist and medical director of the Northwestern Medicine Central DuPage Hospital Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory. “This accomplishment is reflective of the hard work, dedication and collaborative approach we provide to each of our patients.” 

Northwestern Medicine Central DuPage Hospital achieved the highest rating of “High Performing” from U.S. News & World Report in their quality indicators for 30-day survival and stroke prevention. 

In patients with aortic valve stenosis, the aortic valve is narrowed, restricting blood flow from the heart. During a TAVR procedure, an interventional cardiologist and/or a cardiac surgeon inserts a catheter (tube) in the body through an artery. The TAVR valve is compressed and advanced by a catheter through an artery until it reaches the diseased aortic valve. A balloon on the catheter expands to secure the TAVR valve within the diseased aortic valve and then the catheter is removed. The secured TAVR valve remains in place pushing the diseased valve out of the way, allowing the TAVR valve to take over the job of regulating blood flow from the heart. 

Transcatheter techniques like those used in TAVR allow the procedure to be performed while the patient’s heart is still beating, eliminating the need for the heart-lung machine and an open-heart operation. 

“Aortic stenosis is a very serious type of heart disease. Without treatment, patients have a grim prognosis and rapidly decreasing survival rate,” said Gyu Gang, MD, chief of cardiac surgery at Northwestern Medicine Central DuPage Hospital. “It is very gratifying to see patients relieved of suffering and able to quickly resume their activities.” 

Due to the minimally invasive nature of transcatheter procedures, patients tend to recover faster and experience an improvement in symptoms soon after the procedure is completed. 

“Following a TAVR procedure, we often see dramatic changes in our patients with marked improvement in their quality of life,” said Dr. Ahmad. “TAVR offers numerous advantages, including less pain and discomfort, quicker recovery, and shorter length of stay with many patients going home the next day.” 

TAVR is not only an option for patients considered medium- or high-risk for open heart valve surgery, but is also an option for younger, healthier, low-risk patients. In 2019, the results of two transcatheter aortic valve clinical trials – PARTNER 3 and EVOLUT – suggest that low-risk patients do as well or better with TAVR than with open heart valve surgery to replace a diseased aortic valve. 

Since the early days of TAVR, Northwestern Medicine has been a leader in spearheading numerous TAVR clinical trials, helping to expand this therapy in a safe and effective way. Anchored by Northwestern Memorial Hospital, ranked No. 8 in the country for heart and vascular care by U.S. News & World Report, Northwestern Medicine is one of the highest volume and most experienced TAVR programs in the nation. 

For more information, visit nm.org/heart. 
 

PALOS HEIGHTS, Ill. – Feb. 1, 2023 – Cardiovascular disease is the leading killer of women in the United States, causing more deaths than all forms of cancer combined. Among females 20 years and older, nearly 45% are living with some form of cardiovascular disease, according to the American Heart Association. Northwestern Medicine Palos Hospital cardiologists urge women to pay attention to symptoms and risk factors of heart disease.

“Women and men experience very different symptoms when they have coronary artery disease. In fact, it is a more difficult diagnosis to make in women,” said Kristina Quinn Degesys, MD, a cardiologist at the Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute at Palos Hospital. “Chest pain is still the most common symptom, as it is in men. However, women are more likely to have different symptoms, such as arm and jaw pain. This is why women often have delayed diagnoses of acute coronary syndrome.”

Women often have more subtle symptoms. For example, women often describe chest pain as a pressure, tightness or achiness in the center of the chest. Because chest pain experienced by women is often less severe than what is described by men, women should take it seriously even when chest pain seems mild.

Other symptoms of heart attack include:

• Pain or discomfort lasting longer than 20 minutes in other areas of the upper body, including the arms, back, neck, jaw or stomach
• Shortness of breath, even without chest pain
• Breaking out in a cold sweat or feeling faint or woozy
• Fast heartbeat (palpitations)
• Unusual tiredness
• Trouble sleeping
• Problems breathing
• Indigestion, loss of appetite or nausea
• Anxiety

Not everyone experiencing a heart attack will have all the warning signs. The most important thing is to recognize symptoms as a possible heart attack. Getting help early can prevent lasting heart damage.

“In general, women are often caregivers for children, spouses and parents. So quite often, women do not prioritize their health. Almost half of all Americans have at least one risk factor for heart disease: high blood pressure, high cholesterol or smoking. It's important to regularly monitor your numbers,” said Lisa Pudusseri, DO, a cardiologist at the Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute at Palos Hospital. “If something does not feel right with your body, please don't delay seeking medical care. It also means following a heart healthy diet, exercising regularly and maintaining a healthy weight.” 

In addition, Dr. Degesys adds that it is important to pick the right test for diagnosis of coronary artery disease in women. Women have a higher risk of a false positive exercise stress test without imaging.

“The addition of imaging with stress testing is helpful for women. Coronary CT angiography is an important test to consider in women who are at risk for coronary artery disease,” said Dr. Degesys. “Because of this, it's a good idea for women who have risk factors for coronary artery disease such as family history, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, or diabetes to visit a cardiologist to discuss evaluation and prevention strategies.”

Women and men with parents or siblings with heart disease are more likely to develop heart disease themselves. A significant family history is present when a father or brother develops heart disease before the age of 55 or a mother or sister develops heart disease before the age of 65. No one can control his or her family history. Therefore, it is very important for individuals with a family history of heart disease to control any other risk factors to stay healthy.

February is American Heart Month, a time when the nation spotlights heart disease, the No. 1 killer of Americans. The first Friday of American Heart Month, Feb. 5, is also National Wear Red Day as part of the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women initiative.

To learn more about cardiology services at Northwestern Medicine, visit nm.org/heart.

Chicago – December 19, 2022 – Jessica Lopez is grateful to be alive this Christmas after surviving rare, life-threatening blood clots in her lungs.

In December 2021, the 32-year-old from Kissimmee, Fla., was on a cross-country road trip with her brother when her health took a turn for the worse.

“We’d done some sightseeing in Chicago the day before,” said Lopez. “The next morning, I woke up at the hotel and felt like there was something in my chest. I went to the bathroom and started coughing up blood.”

Lopez’s brother walked her across the street to the emergency department at Northwestern Memorial Hospital where CT scans revealed she had chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH)– a condition where chronic blood clots obstruct the flow of blood to the lungs causing elevated blood pressure in the lung’s arteries.

“This is a very specialized disease state,” said Michael J. Cuttica, MD, pulmonologist at Northwestern Medicine Canning Thoracic Institute. “Not many people understand this disease or recognize it. I think this is evident by the fact that she had about five years of symptoms before she was finally diagnosed.”

While the diagnosis initially worried Lopez, it did provide some answers. The flat-track roller derby player had developed years of progressive shortness of breath and had to end her career with Orlando Roller Derby. Eventually, she had trouble just walking around her house.

After a few days of testing and treatment with the CTEPH team at Northwestern Medicine, Lopez underwent pulmonary thromboendarterectomy surgery (PTE), which can be curative.

“What’s special about Jessica’s case is that the right lung was completely blocked off by the clot. And there was smaller, harder-to-reach segmental disease on the left side,” said S. Chris Malaisrie, MD, cardiac surgeon at Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute. “We are one of the few centers in the country to offer this curative surgery and the only multidisciplinary team in Illinois. The fact that she happened to be staying in a hotel across the street from a hospital that offers this is miraculous.”

One week after Christmas, Lopez was discharged from Northwestern Memorial and made the trek home to Florida. While blood thinning medication prevents her from returning to roller derby, she’s grateful to get back to other favorite activities like hiking and weightlifting.

“This whole ordeal has been life-changing,” said Lopez. “My brother was my saving grace and I’m incredibly grateful for my team at Northwestern Medicine. Any awareness I can bring to this disease going forward will be a major positive in my life.”

For more information about the Northwestern Medicine CTEPH team, visit nm.org.

PALOS HEIGHTS, Ill. - Northwestern Medicine Palos Hospital will now be home to the new Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute Outpatient Cardiology Clinic. Opening to patients on December 14, the clinic will feature 16 exam rooms — with two designed as “Clinic of the Future” models — one consult room, and dedicated clinician workspaces. An expanded cardiac diagnostics area, scheduled to open in early 2023, will offer heart failure and echocardiography rooms for cardiac testing procedures.

“The new outpatient clinic is the latest example of Northwestern Medicine’s commitment to provide outstanding clinical care close to where people live and work,” said R. Kannan Mutharasan, MD, medical director of Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute at Palos Hospital. “The opportunity for our clinicians to work together in a modern environment enhances collaboration and is more convenient for patients who may need to see more than one specialist or require frequent testing.”

The clinic is located in suite 1520 on the first floor of Palos Hospital at 12251 South 80th Avenue in Palos Heights. It will provide dedicated clinical space for 12 physicians and six advanced practice nurses, including general cardiologists, interventional cardiologists, cardiac electrophysiologists, heart failure specialists and cardiac surgeons. General cardiology will also continue to be available at Northwestern Medicine Orland Park, located at 15300 West Avenue, Suite 23, Orland Park.

Since launching at Palos Hospital in October 2021, Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute has introduced new cardiology services in the region, including CardioMEMS™, a device to monitor patients with heart failure, and the Shockwave system to treat calcified coronary arteries. Northwestern Medicine Cardiac Surgeon Andrei Churyla, MD, recently joined Palos Hospital to offer more advanced cardiac surgeries, such as total thoracoscopic maze for atrial fibrillation.

“Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute is dedicated to improving heart care by pioneering advanced treatments, performing groundbreaking clinical research, and incorporating innovative technology and artificial intelligence into clinical practice,” said Patrick M. McCarthy, MD, executive director of Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute and vice president of Clinical Integration for Northwestern Medical Group. “We are excited to expand this vision to the south suburbs with talented cardiologists and surgeons who are seeing patients at the new clinic at Palos Hospital.”

Two exam rooms are outfitted with large wall-mounted screens that face the clinician and patient for interactive visuals. Additional advancements planned in the coming months include ambient listening devices (with patient consent) that will test the ability to create clinician-facing documentation for the visit, generate orders and display patient-facing instructions. The concept may also test integration with patient wearables, such as a heart rate or blood pressure monitors.

“The ‘Clinic of the Future’ is about more than just the technology,” said Dr. Mutharasan. “It’s about connecting the patient and the clinician to humanize health care."

The new technology can enhance the overall patient experience and create a more coordinated plan of care, such as creating a seamless check-in, automating some nursing tasks, and improving the availability and accuracy of information.

Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute is an innovative powerhouse in developing the latest safest advances in cardiovascular care. Anchored in downtown Chicago, it has expanded and integrated into nine Northwestern Medicine hospitals. Consistently recognized as one of the top cardiology and cardiac surgery programs in the country, Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute at Northwestern Memorial Hospital is ranked the No. 8 Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery Program in the country by U.S. News & World Report, 2022 – 2023, in the annual “America’s Best Hospitals” rankings.

For more information visit heart.nm.org.

CHICAGO -  Nationally recognized cardiothoracic surgeon, Douglas R. Johnston, MD, has been named surgical director of Northwestern Medicine’s Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute and chief of the division of cardiac surgery at Northwestern Memorial Hospital and Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.

“Dr. Johnston has a strong vision for growth, innovation, sustainability and teamwork. We are confident that his leadership, combined with Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute’s world-class team, will elevate our cardiac surgery program to another level of national prominence,” said Patrick M. McCarthy, MD, who is stepping down as chief of Cardiac Surgery after 18 years in that role. Dr. McCarthy will continue to serve as executive director of the Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute and vice president of clinical integration for Northwestern Medical Group.

Dr. Johnston joins Northwestern Medicine from the Cleveland Clinic where he served as vice chair of the department of thoracic and cardiovascular surgery, program director of the thoracic surgery residency and advanced cardiothoracic fellowships, and surgical director of the Aortic Valve Center. Dr. Johnston specializes in minimally invasive aortic and mitral valve surgery, aortic and endovascular surgery, complex reoperations, pericardial disease and radiation associated cardiac disease.

“I'm very lucky to join an organization that is already a center of excellence in so many ways and is also on a very steep upward trajectory,” said Dr. Johnston. “The vision is to differentiate ourselves as a place where patients can get the best quality care, not just locally but nationally, for both common and uncommon, complex cardiac conditions. I look forward to continuing Bluhm’s legacy of success by working with a very talented team of surgeons to innovate, creatively improve care and continue to grow the program and its reputation.”

Dr. Johnston’s clinical interests and expertise is matched by his innovation portfolio. The accomplished inventor has contributed to 12 submitted or issued patents for inventions that have improved different aspects of patient care, data collection and workflow, and employee well-being. He also has extensive research experience, which started when he was an undergraduate at Dartmouth College and was awarded the Claire Garber Goodman Fund Scholarship. This scholarship gave him the opportunity to be the principal investigator for a study of tuberculosis treatment and prevention in a community with strong indigenous health systems in northern India.

Dr. Johnston earned his medical degree from Harvard Medical School in 1998 before completing his clinical training in general surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. He was awarded the Edward D. Churchill Fellowship, the American College of Surgeons Resident Research Scholarship and an NIH National Research Service Award for his research in the immunology of heart and lung transplantation. He trained in thoracic and cardiovascular surgery at the Cleveland Clinic, including a focused fellowship in endovascular surgery. In 2008, he joined the Cleveland Clinic as a staff surgeon.

“Since its beginning, the goal of the Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute has been to bring world-class cardiovascular care to Chicago, which we have proudly achieved,” said Dr. McCarthy. “The addition of Dr. Johnston to our leadership team furthers that level of excellence and will support our commitment to improving heart care by pioneering advanced treatments, performing groundbreaking clinical research, and incorporating innovative technology and artificial intelligence into clinical practice.”

Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute is an innovative powerhouse in developing the latest, safest advances in cardiovascular care. Anchored in downtown Chicago, it has expanded and integrated into eight Northwestern Medicine hospitals, most recently bringing advanced cardiovascular services to the south suburbs at Northwestern Medicine Palos Hospital. Consistently recognized as one of the top cardiology and cardiac surgery programs in the country, Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute at Northwestern Memorial Hospital is ranked eighth in the country by U.S. News & World Report in the annual “America’s Best Hospitals” rankings.

For more information about Northwestern Medicine's top ranked cardiovascular care, go to nm.org/heart or call 312-NM-HEART. For more information about Northwestern Medicine, visit news.nm.org. 

Using the app on Apple Watch and an accompanying app on iPhone, patients in the trial will be able to target blood-thinning medication use for a limited period of time and only in response to a prolonged episode of AFib, thus creating personalized care unique to each patient.

“If proven effective, this new treatment paradigm will fundamentally change the standard of care for the millions of Americans living with AFib,” said principal investigator Rod Passman, MD, director of the Center for Arrhythmia Research and a professor of medicine in the division of cardiology at Feinberg.

“Many of these patients are on blood thinners for the rest of their lives even if they have infrequent episodes of atrial fibrillation,” Passman said. “If we can show this strategy is equally protective against stroke and reduces bleeding, that could save lives, reduce cost and improve quality of life.”  

For eight years, Passman has been studying solutions to end the standard “one-size-fits-all” practice of prescribing lifelong blood thinners (anticoagulants) to everyone with AFib. 

The trial secures Northwestern as the world leader in wearable devices for treating atrial fibrillation. 

While it is estimated that between 2.5 and 5 million Americans are living with AFib today, that number is estimated to grow to 12.1 million by 2030. Worldwide, the estimated number of individuals with AFib in 2010 was 33.5 million, according to a 2013 study.

Targeting when to use blood thinners to limit reliance

AFib is a heart rhythm disorder characterized by fast and irregular heartbeats from the upper chambers of the heart. People with AFib have increased risk of stroke, so many are continuously treated with blood-thinning medication to reduce that risk. But this treatment also raises the risk of bleeding, according to Passman, and balancing the risks and benefits can be challenging for both patients and physicians. 

However, some patients with AFib have infrequent episodes of irregular heart rhythm either on their own or as the result of medications or procedures. Current evidence suggests the risk of stroke increases in the weeks following an episode of AFib then returns to a baseline, raising the possibility of intermittent blood-thinner treatment. 

Since many individuals have no symptoms during an episode of AFib, the new trial will employ Apple Watch to monitor heart activity and notify patients when they’re entering an episode. 

When notified, patients will take blood-thinning medication for a few weeks during the high-risk window for stroke and can discontinue if they do not have another episode. This “pill-in-pocket” approach could protect patients against stroke while reducing bleeding events and the cost of Afib treatment, Passman said. 

“We think advances in technology will allow us to personalize this care,” Passman said. “Why should patients expose themselves to the risk and cost of these drugs when they may not be benefiting?”

More about the trial:

The seven-year trial will recruit 5,400 patients, randomizing them to receive either the current standard of care or treatment directed by the app on Apple Watch. The trial will also examine whether the app can reduce major bleeding events compared to continuous therapy. 

Secondary aims include measuring patient satisfaction and health care resource utilization. Importantly, the trial will reveal important information about AFib no matter the findings, according to Passman. 

“While most data suggest the atrial fibrillation rhythm itself causes the stroke, there’s an alternative hypothesis that the risk remains even when the rhythm itself goes away,” Passman said. “If this strategy is not equally effective, then perhaps we should reconsider whether the rhythm of the heart causes stroke or is simply a marker for some underlying mechanism.”

This grant application was administratively supported by the Northwestern University Clinical and Translational Sciences (NUCATS) Institute, the Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute’s Clinical Trials Unit and the Trial Innovation Network.

Northwestern is the lead study site. Partnering institutions include Johns Hopkins, Stanford University and University of California at San Francisco. 

To receive this recognition, hospitals must demonstrated sustained achievement in the Chest Pain  ̶   MI Registry for two consecutive years (2020 and 2021), and performed at the highest level for specific performance measures. Full participation in the registry engages hospitals in a robust quality improvement process using data to drive improvements in adherence to guideline recommendations and overall quality of care provided to heart attack patients. This is the third year that Huntley Hospital has received this award, and the fourth year for McHenry Hospital and Lake Forest Hospital.

The expansion of the Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute in McHenry County continues to evolve, providing patients who need advanced cardiac care with more convenient locations. Northwestern Medicine McHenry Hospital recently achieved a milestone with the completion of the 100^th Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacements (TAVR). With TAVR, a narrowed aortic valve is replaced using a catheter-based technique instead of open-heart surgery.

In addition to the TAVR milestone, Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute at Huntley Hospital successfully implanted the first CardioMEMS device, marking its continued commitment to expanding the cardiac program in McHenry County. A CardioMEMS is a monitoring device that is deployed in the pulmonary artery, allowing non-invasive monitoring of pulmonary artery pressures, which helps to guide medical therapy in patients with heart failure.

Lake Forest Hospital now utilizes a novel technology,  called Shockwave intravascular lithotripsy, which is used as adjunctive therapy to implanting stents in heavily calcified vessels. This therapy allows for optimal revascularization of calcified coronary arteries by ultrasonically breaking up calcium deposits before stent implantation in the artery making these procedures safer and more successful.

“The Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute at Lake Forest, Huntley and McHenry Hospitals are pleased to be recognized with the National Cardiovascular Data Registry’s 2022 Chest Pain - MI Registry Platinum Performance Achievement Award,” said Ian Cohen MD, FACC, FSCAI, Charles and Barbara Strang Medical Director Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute for Lake Forest, McHenry and Huntley hospitals. “We continue to provide the highest quality of care by offering new and innovative cardiovascular procedures in convenient settings close to home for our  patients.”

About Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute

Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute is a nationally recognized destination for those requiring highly specialized cardiovascular care. Our cardiovascular physicians and staff are committed to providing outstanding, comprehensive care for the cardiac and vascular patient.

U.S. News & World Report has consistently ranked the cardiovascular program at Northwestern Memorial Hospital as the top Cardiology & Heart Surgery program in Illinois and among the top in the country.

Six niche centers within Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute offer patient focused, specialized care, making Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute a leading destination for both initial diagnoses and second opinions. These niche programs include physicians, nurses and a range of multidisciplinary specialists working with patients to navigate the complex health care system, ensuring continuity of care and a seamless shift from inpatient to outpatient services and ultimately home.

To learn more about Northwestern Medicine, visit http://news.nm.org/about-northwestern-medicine.html.

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“I thought maybe I had Lyme disease, COVID-19 or walking pneumonia; I just wasn’t sure,” said 48-year-old Keller.

By September, he developed horrible headaches, and was admitted to Northwestern Memorial Hospital for testing. Blood work showed Keller had endocarditis (an infected heart valve) from Streptococcus mutans (oral bacteria) that can cause cavities.

“We’re all exposed to little bits of bacteria from the mouth, but Jay’s stuck to his valve because he had a congenital heart abnormality – he was born with two aortic valve leaflets instead of three, called a bicuspid aortic valve. It’s associated with a higher risk of cardiovascular complications, including endocarditis,” said Karen Krueger, MD, infectious diseases specialist at Northwestern Medicine.

“Because of the two-leaflet valve, the flow across that valve was not normal, and it lent to the valve getting infected more easily. Jay developed an infection of that valve, which then caused a stroke,” said Duc Thinh Pham, MD, cardiac surgeon at Northwestern Medicine.

Each time Keller’s heart would beat, it would push blood through the infected valve and flick pieces into his brain, causing an infected mycotic brain aneurysm, which is a very dangerous condition. Due to the important blood vessels involved, Babak Jahromi, MD, PhD, neurosurgeon at Northwestern Medicine, had to open Keller’s skull, cut the aneurysm out, and sew the affected brain blood vessels to other unaffected brain blood vessel segments. It was the first time Dr. Jahromi performed a double bypass for a mycotic aneurysm. The rare, 8-hour procedure preserved Keller’s important blood vessels.

“It’s basically redoing the plumbing of the brain by cutting out the part that’s bulging out and getting the remaining tubes to connect to each other,” said Dr. Jahromi. “Having a fusiform brain aneurysm is very uncommon and having that be related to a heart infection is even more uncommon. Jay came to the right place because Northwestern Medicine had the right team to deal with potential simultaneous disasters.”

Just a few days following brain surgery, Keller was already up and walking the hospital hallways. He logged seven miles in one day and couldn’t believe how much better he felt.

Two months later, Keller was back in the operating room with Dr. Pham who fixed the infected heart valve on April 21, 2022. Surgeons also found a small hole in Keller’s heart that they were able to fix. 

Keller recently finished cardiac rehabilitation and he’s ready to get back to running, biking, swimming, and spending quality time this Father’s Day with his wife, Grace, and their 7-year-old son, Hudson.

 “Obviously, it takes on a little more appreciation when you go through something like this,” said Keller. “You go back and re-visit your priorities.”