Health Essentials - Spring 2012 - Hillcrest - (Page 6)

all Against odds ‘Miracle man’ Bill Consolo wakes up from monthlong coma and makes incredible recovery MAY 5, 2011, STARTED as a normal day for the Consolo family of Macedonia. Bill Consolo was at his family-owned business, Chief’s Auto Wash in South Euclid, and Carolyn Consolo at her steel company job. Their children were in classes at Nordonia High School. But Bill, 52, felt stressed. After dealing with a difficult customer, he sat down at his desk and all of a sudden passed out. His office manager called 9-1-1, and in minutes, a South Euclid emergency medical services (EMS) squad arrived. Bill was unresponsive, not breathing and without a pulse. Suspecting a heart attack, the squad performed an electrocardiogram and transmitted the results directly to Hillcrest Hospital’s emergency department (ED). There the staff diagnosed the heart attack and quickly assembled its heart team. En route to the ED, medics defibrillated Bill three times 6 HEALTH ESSENTIALS and continued CPR efforts. Yet, Bill’s heart would not beat normally. This was worrisome because, as a heart attack progresses, more heart muscle is damaged with every minute that goes by. Waiting in the ED for Bill to arrive was cardiologist Jonathan Scharfstein, MD, FACC. “Although Mr. Consolo was comatose and had no indication of neurological function, we rushed him into the cath [cardiac catheterization] lab,” he says. Confronting the Widow-Maker In the cath lab, the cardiologist discovered that Bill’s left anterior descending coronary artery—commonly known as “the widow-maker”—was totally blocked. He opened the blockage and inserted a stent. “The procedure went very smoothly, but the issue was the patient’s neurological function,” says Dr. Scharfstein, who serves as chief of Hillcrest’s Division of Cardiology and medical director of the coronary care unit and Chest Pain Center. Meanwhile, Carolyn Consolo anxiously waited outside the lab. “Dr. Scharfstein told me Bill’s chances were not good because his brain was without oxygen too long,” she says. “He was moved to the cardiac care unit, where the staff was great—very friendly and comforting.” Three days later as Bill lay in a coma, his organs began to fail. “The neurologist told me his brain was deteriorating and that it might be time to consider taking him off life support,” Carolyn says. Fortunately, life got in the way of death. “Our family life was very busy that month,” Carolyn says. “Our son, Kyle, was a senior in high school and had prom and graduation. Our daughter, Macie, was a 10th-grader and getting confirmed at church. I could not have our children’s lives turned upside down at this time. So I decided June 5 would be the day.” On May 24, Bill was moved to an extended-care facility, where he remained in a coma. “Mrs. Consolo said she couldn’t have a funeral and prom in the same weekend,” says Dr. Scharfstein. So life went on. Then Bill woke up. It was June 4, the day before he was to go off life support. At first, he simply showed signs of eye movement. Eventually, he started talking. SPRING 2012

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Health Essentials - Spring 2012 - Hillcrest

Health Essentials - Spring 2012 - Hillcrest
A grandmother’s strength
Exciting news about Health Essentials
11 reasons to start walking now
‘Miracle man’ survives monthlong coma

Health Essentials - Spring 2012 - Hillcrest

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