Ken’s Story Ventricular Assisted Device Gives Ken A Second Chance At Life

Ken had his first heart attack at age 29. In the years that followed, he suffered a stroke and a second heart attack. At age 52—after spending the past two and a half years bedridden—Ken was rushed to Memorial Regional Hospital in January, when his lungs filled up with fluid. It was the beginning of a second chance at life. “Luckily in January, we were able to meet Dr. Gongora and Dr. Dumitru, and they said I would need an LVAD,” Ken says. An LVAD, or left ventricular assist device, is a mechanical pump that is surgically placed inside the heart to keep blood flowing from the heart to the body, supplying blood to the vital organs, said Enrique Gongora, MD, Medical Director of the Adult Cardiac Surgical Transplant Program at Memorial Cardiac and Vascular Institute (MCVI). Dr. Gongora surgically implanted two LVADs in Ken’s heart. When the first device implanted in February became occluded with a blood clot, he replaced it with a new LVAD in April. “He gave me my life back,” says Ken. “The whole Memorial staff is unbelievable. I can’t thank them enough. The whole staff has been like family. The doctors have been so close, making sure you’re OK, putting their trips on hold for you, calling you and checking on you. It’s just amazing. All these years, in and out of hospitals, it’s been nothing like this.” Now, Ken is continuing with outpatient therapy at Memorial Rehabilitation Institute and receives regular follow-up care with Ioana Dumitru, MD, Medical Director of Adult Cardiac Transplant, Heart Failure and Cardiomyopathy at MCVI. “When somebody pursues implantation of an LVAD, it’s done primarily for improving quality as well as quantity of life,” says Dr. Dumitru, who noted how well Ken is doing since his LVAD surgeries. “It has given him not only time back with the family—he goes out, he visits other patients and gives them hope about getting better.”