Shortness of breath. Fatigue. Decreased mobility. These heart failure symptoms are very familiar to Thomas Black and Laurence Nemon, yet each is enjoying improved quality of life, thanks to the Heart Failure Clinic at Catholic Medical Center.

Black had his first heart attack at 42, followed by heart bypass surgery five years later. The now 58-year-old felt well until two years ago, when he experienced chest pain on exertion. He saw CMC cardiologist Robert Capodilupo, MD, FACC, at the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Manchester Cardiology Clinic, his medications were adjusted and he felt better, for a while.

A year later, Black was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation – an irregular heartbeat – and had a pacemaker implanted at CMC. Within a year, his chest pain and fatigue returned. Tests showed a low ejection fraction: his heart wasn’t pumping efficiently. A CMC electrophysiologist implanted a biventricular pacemaker to pace both sides of Black’s heart to make it a more productive pump.

“For heart failure patients who are persistently symptomatic despite optimal medical care, a biventricular pacemaker can make the heart eject more blood and beat more efficiently” says Dr. Capodilupo, medical director of the CMC Heart Failure Clinic. “Biventricular pacemakers not only make patients feel better, but also decrease the risk of progressive heart failure and death.”

A few months ago, Black’s biventricular pacemaker was fine-tuned further at CMC with echocardiographic guidance to ensure the pacemaker is allowing his heart to pump as efficiently as possible.

Before his pacemaker was implanted, Black struggled to walk 100 feet. Now he walks a mile or so around Manchester’s Dorrs Pond with his wife, an activity he calls “fantastic.”

For Laurence Nemon, 66, struggling to maintain his exercise level in the cardiac program at CMC’s Wellness Center first tipped him off that his heart failure was worsening. His body became unresponsive to his low-sodium, fluid-restricted diet and increasing doses of diuretics, causing his limbs and abdomen to
swell with fluid.

Referred by his physician to CMC’s Heart Failure Clinic, he met with Marilyn Daley, MSN, APRN, associate clinical director of the clinic, who oversaw his inpatient ultrafiltration. During the process, his blood was circulated through a machine that filtered out excess water and salt, removing 17 pounds of fluid over three days.

“For patients who are unresponsive to escalating doses of diuretics, ultrafiltration is an excellent choice,” says CMC cardiologist Richard Patten, MD, FACC. “It can shorten a patient’s length of stay in the hospital and reliably take off fluid.”

“Ultrafiltration worked marvelously,” adds Nemon. “My breathing improved immediately. Getting rid of the fluid had a major effect on my quality of life, including being able to resume the cardiac program at the Wellness Center.”

For more information on CMC’s Heart Failure Clinic, call ASK-A-NURSE at 626.2626.

Living With Heart Failure:
A Self-Management Program
Tues. Mar. 30, Apr. 6 & 13 ~ 2 to 4 PM
Location: Prime Time,
195 McGregor St. Suite LL22
No charge. Registration required.