On Oct. 3, 2021, Wes Dunn, a machine operator at a local manufacturing plant, was working his usual shift when he began experiencing mild aching in his chest. He described it as a sort of burning sensation. Dunn immediately turned to the folks in the emergency response team at the plant. “I called one of…

Mark Milton, a retired educator of 37 years, has enjoyed an active lifestyle. Originally from Southern California and now residing in Arkansas, he enjoys the outdoors — fishing, golfing, wine tasting and traveling with his wife. Milton’s health took a dramatic turn in December 2019 when he suffered a stroke. He made a full recovery,…

Adam Betz, M.D., director of pulmonary ECMO at OklahomaHeart, talks about the rise in ECMO treatments with young COVID patients. “If you are that sick, this is a life-changing experience from there forward,” Betz said. “They’re going to remember the physical scars, they’re going to remember the shortness of breath. We get a lot of them back…

The pandemic has altered many elements of everyday life including sleep patterns, according to Michael Newnam, M.D., co-director of sleep medicine at Oklahoma Heart Institute. Dr. Newnam described the condition as coronasomnia. Because of the pandemic, some have lost their boundaries between work and home environments. “Many people are doing school and work in the…

Individuals dealing with high blood pressure could be among those at greater risk to COVID-19. Ankit Chothani, M.D., a specialist in interventional and peripheral endovascular cardiology with Oklahoma Heart Institute, said people impacted by high blood pressure can be more suspectable to contracting the virus and possibly suffering longer-term symptoms. “These changes can make patients…

Teenager Hunter Parrick is one of the youngest in the state to undergo his-bundle pacing surgery from Oklahoma Heart Institute. Traditional pacemaker leads, or wires, pace the muscle of the bottom chambers, leading to an unnatural squeeze. His-bundle leads are placed within the natural conduction system of the heart, allowing for a normal and natural…

In 2019, Grant Brown, 42, was in poor health and couldn’t shake the feeling that his current lifestyle may not allow him to be around for his family in the future. Just as those thoughts were closing in, his daughter heard about Oklahoma Heart Institute’s Weight Loss & Wellness Center. A nursing student at Oral…

(March is National Nutrition Month and to commemorate the occasion, Hillcrest Medical Center and Oklahoma Heart Institute dietitian Andrea Shotton will share her expertise on the topic of nutrition in a pandemic through a series of weekly blogs. In the first edition, Shotton discusses if it is possible to eat nutritious meals that are also…

Kyla Jones had been dealing with debilitating migraines for quite some time and even experienced small strokes. “I was having multiple migraines a month,” Jones said. “They were lasting days on end. I would literally go from one to another.” Along with terrible headaches, her list of symptoms progressed as time passed. Jones eventually had…

Ready or not, daylight saving time is coming up on Sunday, March 14. Setting those clocks forward to “spring” up an hour can be an adjustment in sleep schedules for adults, much less children. Michael Newnam, M.D., is a specialist in the diagnosis and treatment of sleep disorders with Oklahoma Heart Institute and director of…