Real stories of real people
who got their heart's rhythm
back in order

As many as 3 million Americans experience the frustration of living
with Atrial Fibrillation. The following are true stories of successful
treatments for heart rhythm disorder performed at St. Vincent's.

Watch the Videos
Lilian
Video of Lillian Butler-Humphrey and Gerald Burn

Lillian Butler-Humphrey and Gerald Burns both experienced the frustration of living with Atrial Fibrillation. They have also both experienced successful treatment for their heart rhythm disorder at St. Vincent's.

Lillian Butler-Humphrey is a 60-year-old active woman who says Atrial Fibrillaton caused her to be extremely tired much of the time. For a woman who loves to be constantly on the go, AFIB was life altering. She was often short of breath and experienced what she describes as "the flutters."

"It's hard to describe exactly how my heart felt when I had AFIB," says Butler-Humphrey. "You just knew you weren't supposed to feel this way. It's like your heart races when you run and calms down when you stop running. When you have AFIB, your heart keeps racing even after you stop and sit down. It's scary."

Gerald Burns is a 61-year-old man whose passions are spending time with his wife and riding his bicycle. In a good year, Burns would ride 10,000 miles. Some of the medication he took for Atrial Fibrillation made that impossible.    

"Some of the medicine would make me just sit on the couch and stare," Burns remembers. "Later, my doctors found a medicine that was not so bad, but I still never felt like myself "good enough to do all the things I love to do."

Both Lillian and Gerald found answers to their heart rhythm disorder at St. Vincent's, where they had catheter ablation procedures. Nearly six months after those procedures, neither had experienced Atrial Fibrillation and hoped they would soon be able to stop taking medication altogether.

"I am back on my bike, back to work, and I feel great," Burns says. While he won't be able to complete 10,000 miles this year on his bicycle, Burns plans to go as far as he can.

Butler-Humphrey says she was once an avid walker before Atrial Fibrillation took away her energy. Now, she says she is able to return to distance walking. She is also considering joining a gym and is enjoying thinking about all of the things she can do now. "I love my life," Butler-Humphrey says. "And I am going to live it."

Lillian
Video of James Skellion

James Skellion has always been proud of his health and fitness. He's a lean and active
60-year-old who eats a careful diet and has run dozens of marathons.

So when his doctor told him he had Atrial Fibrillation he was extremely surprised, not to mention confused.

"I couldn't believe there was anything wrong with my heart," Skellion says. "Frankly, I'd never even heard of Atrial Fibrillation. I was totally and completely shocked."" Some people with AFIB experience symptoms such as exhaustion, shortness of breath, sweating and fainting. But others are like James Skellion and have no symptoms at all. Luckily, Skellion's condition was caught by an EKG during his annual physical.

"James is like thousands who have no idea they have this condition that could cost them their lives," says Dr. Mark Mostovych, who performs cardiovascular surgery at St. Vincent's. "About one fifth of this nation's strokes arise out of Atrial Fibrillation. Having the condition exist untreated is dangerous. Once it is diagnosed, it can also be difficult to treat.    

There are many options when treating AFIB, but for patients like Skellion, medication is not one of them. "For some people, Atrial Fibrillation is very manageable with medications or a minimally invasive procedure, and that's great for them," Dr. Mostovych says. "For patients who aren't helped by those choices, the only option used to be major surgery. Now, there's something brand new that is changing everything."

In dramatic contrast the newer surgery Dr. Mostovych suggests, often referred to as the simplified Maze, is performed through a small incision with the patient's heart continuing to beat and no need for the heart-lung machine. Instead of using a scalpel to make the new paths for electrical current in the heart, Dr. Mostovych uses heat delivered by high intensity focused ultrasound in a device designed by St. Jude Medical and recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration.

"I understood this was brand new, but I wasn't worried or nervous," says James Skellion. "I wanted to get past this condition so I would not be at risk of a stroke, and I wanted to recover as quickly as possible." Patients who have the traditional Maze procedure face seven to nine days in the hospital.

James Skellion was able to leave St. Vincent's three days after the simplified Maze. "I went home on a Thursday and I haven't taken pain medication since the day after I was released from the hospital," says Skellion. "Every year I do the Relay for Life. I look forward to lacing up my running shoes and just getting back to being me."

 
The Atrial Fibrillation Handbook Post Procedures Guide and Instructions CHADS Risk Stroke Assessment