You’ve heard the expression “chill-out”… Well, that’s exactly what a cardiology team at University Hospital helped a local patient do recently, and it saved his life!
Local 12’s Liz Bonis explains how in today’s Medical Edge.
When Thomas Hufford first met up with this team of cardiologists…
Thomas Hufford, UC Health Patient: “Apparently, my heart had stopped beating.”
But Doctor Andrew Berger and Doctor Tarek Helmy also discovered…
Dr. Andrew Berger, UC Health: “With his prolonged cardiac arrest, he had heart failure, he had brain failure, he had damage to his kidneys, because they weren’t profused, and he had some damage to his liver, because that was not profused.”
As you might imagine, that put this team in a difficult dilemma, they needed his body to sort of start restoring it’s function, to perform life-saving heart surgery. So, Hufford had to chill out, literally.
“This is the blanket that is connected to the cold saline, and it’s placed on the patient…”
A blanket of salt water was used to give Hufford hypothermic therapy. It brought his body temperature down to 75 degrees, which slows damage, and sure enough…
“After 24 hours, we saw significant improvement with his heart function and with his brain function.”
Not only did that allow for heart surgery, it also left both Hufford and his team sort of in awe.
“I actually help facilitate the body to recover and the man upstairs took care of the rest.”
What’s more amazing… Hufford has had no residual damage.
“You got some more things to do, apparently. Do you know what those are? No, he’ll let me know.”
