April 2014

Share Your Story – Melissa Futrell

At the age of 33, Melissa Futrell went to the Emergency Department when a bad headache wouldn’t go away. She had started to slur her speech and wasn’t sure what was causing her symptoms. She was diagnosed with a “complex migraine” and referred to a neurologist. Melissa started medication for the migraine, but also noticed her heart felt like it was tightening every once in a while. Her confusing health situation came up in a conversation with a good friend, whose husband is a cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon.

Facing Heart Disease – “I have never had anything this serious.”

This summer Neva Terry will celebrate her 73rd birthday in June. The following month marks her second anniversary since being diagnosed and treated for heart disease. “My only hope was to live at least a month to see my middle grandson marry,” admits Neva of being told she had severe heart block. “Now it has been two years in July!”

Future for Treating Aortic Stenosis Bright with TAVR

Two new studies look at transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) as improving the survival rates of high-risk patients with severe aortic stenosis versus traditional surgical valve replacement and compare leading FDA-approved valves available, the Edwards Sapien XT and Medtronic’s CoreValve. Director of Structural Heart Disease and Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement at Oklahoma Heart Institute, Dr. Kamran Muhammad, shares what this recent news means for patients.