St. Luke's Hospital's Heart & Vascular Institute takes innovative approach to treating atrial fibrillation

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Photo courtesy of John Gorsuch

Years ago, Jack Gorsuch was on a hockey trip with his son when he began to feel clammy and anxious. He awoke the next day feeling better and wrote it off as a fluke. When the symptoms soon returned, however, his wife called 911. Physicians at St. Luke's Hospital's Heart & Vascular Institute diagnosed Gorsuch with atrial fibrillation (AFib), or an irregular heartbeat.

The condition affects nearly 2.7 million people across the United States. St. Luke's Electrophysiologist Dr. Stephen Pieper compares AFib to a pond when it’s raining: "The upper chamber of the heart experiences a rapid, irregular rhythm, putting patients at much greater risk for stroke and heart failure."

He also stated that "even if AFib cannot be cured, it can be improved." One treatment option is catheter ablation, in which heat or cryotherapy can help fix the irregular heartbeat. In fact, Dr. Pieper's colleague and fellow St. Luke's Electrophysiologist Dr. J. Mauricio Sanchez is the first physician in the region to perform the procedure without X-rays; instead using three-dimensional mapping, which cuts down a patient's exposure to radiation.

Gorsuch received an ablation and stayed at St. Luke’s for two days. He compared the time to staying at a hotel. “It truly couldn’t get any better,” he recalls.

Six years later, he's back to his regular lifestyle. He's quick to compliment the team at St. Luke’s. "I am not easily impressed," says Gorsuch, "and the doctors at St. Luke’s really impressed me.”

This post was created by SLM Partner Studio on behalf of St. Luke's Hospital.

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St. Luke’s Hospital Electrophysiologists Jonas Cooper, MD, MPH, FACC, Stephen Pieper, MD, FHRS, and J. Mauricio Sanchez, MD, FHRS