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Home > Blog > Power Player – Tony

Power Player – Tony

January 23, 2018

Written by: Tony Alfredo Leon Luna

I am from Venezuela. I was diagnosed with myocardiopathy when I was 5 years old. I had my first pacemaker in 2005 and received another one 2011. After the second pacemaker, my heart was growing more and needed more stimulation. Since that the generator ran out faster, I received another one 2014.

With the passage of time, my heart failure was increasing so my doctors suggested a heart transplant. I researched all over the internet about heart failure and heart transplantation. In Venezuela, they do not offer transplant surgery, so I began searching for countries where it was available.

I decided to travel to the USA in August 2016. My first cardiologist, who was in the USA at the time, helped me contact the transplant team at Memorial Regional Hospital.

When I had my first appointment, they changed my treatment for a week to see how my body reacted and to start the process. When I had the catheterization in September, they had to leave me hospitalized since I had very high heart rates.

I was given milrinone while the pre-transplant process began, and there they decided to place me on LVAD and RLVAD.  After the surgery in January, I was hospitalized for 6 months. In March, I was discharged and on July 23, 2017, I received my heart transplant.

The process is ongoing, but thanks to God and my doctors, the entire post-transplant process has been rewarding and it’s worth it to keep fighting and never give up.

 

Soy  de Venezuela, me diagnosticaron una miocardiopatia desde los 5 años, tuve mi primer marcapasos en el 2005 el siguiente marcapasos lo tuve en el 2011 luego de eso mi corazon fue creciendo mas y necesitaba mas estimulacion y debido a eso el generador se agoto mas rapido y me colocaron otro en el año 2014.

Con el pasar del tiempo mi insuficiencia cardiaca fue aunmentando por lo cual mis doctores me sugirieron un trasplante de corazon, fui investigando por internet todo sobre insuficiencia cardiaca y trasplante de corazon y en que paises lo hacian debido que en mi pais no hacian ese tipo de cirujias.

Decidi a viajar a USA en agosto del 2016, y alli mi primer cardiologo que para el momento estaba aqui me ayudo a contactar al equipo medico de trasplante del Memorial Regional Hospital, cuando tuve mi primera cita me cambiaron el tratamiento por una semana para probar como reaccionaba y para comenzar con el proceso. Cuando me hicieron el cateterismo en septiembre tuvieron que dejarme hospitalizado por que tenia las preciones del corazon muy elevadas.

Me colocaron milrinone mientra comenzo el proceso pre trasplante, y alli decidieron colocarme un LVAD Y RLVAD, despues de la cirugia el 13 de enero me cambiaron nuevamente el generador luego de eso me dieron de alta por 3 dias y rerese al hospital por una infeccion con la cual dure hasta marzo por que no se encontraba donde estaba la infeccion dure hospitalizado 6 meses en marzo me dieron de alta y el 23 de julio de este año recibi mi corazon.

El proceso aun sigue pero gracias a dios y a mis doctores todo el proceso posttrasplante a sido gratificante y vale l pena seguir luchando y nunca rendirse.

 

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