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Treating the Whole Patient — With Heart
When Sonia Landy Harrison, 81,
of Lakewood visited the emergency
department at her local
hospital due to stomach pain, she did not
expect the whirlwind of events that followed.
First her heart started beating erratically, then
she passed out and had to be resuscitated in
order to keep her heart beating.
It was at that point that Sonia was
rushed to Jersey Shore University Medical
Center with acute coronary syndrome. She
was brought to the cardiac catheterization
lab, where Maurice Weiss, M.D., performed
an angioplasty and inserted a stent
to open the artery and restore blood flow
to the heart.
"An angioplasty is a minimally invasive
technique in which a balloon catheter is
threaded through the artery to open it,"
explains Dr. Weiss. "The artery is then
kept open with the use of a stent device.
In Sonia’s case, time was critical — we
needed to open the artery right away."
Joining a Clinical Trial
After her successful angioplasty, Sonia was
to be treated with medications to prevent
future blood clots. This is where her prior
relationship with Dr. Weiss played a part.
Dr. Weiss is the local principal investigator
for a worldwide clinical trial called
TIMI-38, which will compare the effectiveness
of two medications given after heart
procedures. The medications help prevent
blood clots, a risk factor for patients recovering
from acute coronary syndrome and angioplasty. Sonia was a good candidate
to participate in the study.
For Sonia, the decision to participate
was an easy one. "My husband was diagnosed
with Parkinson’s disease in his 30s.
As a result, we pursued many innovative
and experimental treatment options during
the past 40 years," she says. "We’ve been to all the big hospitals in New York, so it
was great to know that Jersey Shore, which
is right in our backyard, offers the most
current treatments and clinical trials."
Sonia’s decision was reinforced by the
care she received at Jersey Shore. "The
team at Jersey Shore takes great care to
explain the different options, your rights as
a patient, and the implications of a specific
research study. But what really stood out to
me was their sensitivity. They truly listened
and treated me as a whole patient — not
just for my heart problem. They really took
the time to go over everything with me at
Jersey Shore."
A Team Approach to Treatment
The angioplasty and clinical trial medications
would treat part of her heart disease,
but doctors still needed to consider the
abnormal heart rhythm that caused Sonia’s
heart to stop in the days preceding her
angioplasty. Another subspecialist was
needed to complete her care team. Luckily
for Sonia, the expertise she needed was
available at Jersey Shore — the only place
to offer the full range of electrophysiology
services in the region.
Ihab Girgis, M.D., board certified in
electrophysiology, implanted a device
near Sonia’s heart known as an implantable
cardioverter defibrillator (ICD).
Dr. Girgis describes the ICD as similar to
a pacemaker. "It is designed to deliver a shock when the heart beats too fast," says
Dr. Girgis. "This, in effect, normalizes the
heart rhythm."
"Dr. Girgis was very comforting," says
Sonia. "It’s obvious all the providers work
as a team, and they also worked with my
primary care physician, who works outside
the hospital."
Sonia was discharged from Jersey Shore
after six days following the two heart
procedures, and she sees Dr. Weiss for
ongoing treatment. She has resumed her
former active lifestyle, spending time with
family and driving back and forth to New
York City on a regular basis. "I enjoy the
theater, ballet, the museums, and all New
York has to offer. I’ve been going there for
years, and it’s nice to be able to drive there
again myself."
 – Ryan Younger
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How can you be sure your heart is getting
a good workout? Try to exercise in your
target heart range for at least 20 minutes,
three to five times a week.
To calculate the range that’s right for you,
subtract your age from 220. The result is
your maximum heart rate. For example,
if you are 40 years old, your maximum
heart rate is 180. Your target range
is 50 percent to 75 percent of that
number, or between 90 and 135
heartbeats per minute.
To see if your heart rate is within your
target range, count how many times your
heart beats per minute during your workout.
Stop during your workout and count
your heartbeats:
- Find your pulse on your neck, wrist, or the base of your thumb.
- Use your watch to count your pulse for 10 seconds. Multiply that number by six.
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