THE LARRY KING CARDIAC FOUNDATION AND GUIDANT CORPORATION DONATE SURGERY, EQUIPMENT TO GIVE 29-YEAR-OLD HESPERIA WOMAN A LIFE-SAVING DEFIBRILLATOR
LOS ANGELES (Oct. 15, 2001) -- When her 7-year-old son, P.J., excitedly reached for a donut, then suddenly collapsed in January 1998, 26-year-old Titia Domijan, Hesperia, CA, had no idea how drastically her life was about to change. She would soon learn that she, her mother and two of her four children had a congenital heart disorder she had never heard of -- a genetically linked disease that is almost impossible to detect unless doctors are looking specifically for it, but which can cause sudden death -- with no advance warning.
On that January day, P.J. was rushed to an Inland Empire hospital. At the emergency room, doctors could not find anything wrong and decided to release him. As they were removing the wires that had been used in P.J.'s examination and evaluation, he "flat-lined," says Titia. "He had no pulse and no heartbeat. They were telling me to stay calm because if I got excited or panicked, it could make him even worse."
The doctors decided to transport P.J. by ambulance to a larger facility, but on the drive there, he flat-lined twice more, Titia remembers. The little boy underwent extensive testing, including genetics testing, and doctors discovered that he had Long QT Syndrome, a disorder that was first identified only a few years ago. He was outfitted with a pacemaker to help regulate the electrical impulses in his heart.
According to Peng-Sheng Chen, M.D., a cardiologist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, in a patient with Long QT, the heart is structurally normal, but it is electrically unstable. "This means that the patient has a high probability of dying suddenly," he explains.
"It's very scary having this condition," says Titia. "You never know from one day to the next whether your children will still be there or whether you'll still be there. You just have to live each day as though it were your last, because with Long QT, there's no warning."
That spring, she began to have frightening episodes -- she couldn't breathe, was dizzy and experienced chest pressure. "I could actually feel my heart stop and re-start," she recalls. "Sometimes I would black out." She went back to the doctor, and was implanted with a defibrillator to regulate the rhythm of her heart, but the next year she began having problems with the device and underwent surgery to correct a lead that was sending out electrical impulses even when none were needed.
As if her family's medical problems weren't enough, Titia had another problem to face. Her medical bills were mounting, but she was no longer able to work as a parking lot painter and had no insurance.
Although she had undergone surgery to repair the lead in her defibrillator, she continued to have problems with the device and in September, 2001, her doctors referred her to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, which has both the special equipment needed for the delicate lead extraction surgery she needed, and a highly trained specialist experienced in this type of procedure. Once the device was removed, a new defibrillator would be implanted.
But Titia was still worried about costs. Her medical bills already exceeded $1 million. Without insurance or any other means of paying for the procedure, she didn't know what to do. Enter The Larry King Cardiac Foundation. Founded in 1988 to provide funding for individuals who need life-saving heart surgery but cannot afford to pay for it, the foundation agreed to pay for Titia's surgery at Cedars-Sinai.
In addition, Guidant Corporation, a developer and manufacturer of cardiovascular devices, had recently made a $1 million equipment donation to The Larry King Cardiac Foundation, and Titia became the first person to benefit from that very generous gift. Her new defibrillator would be provided free of charge thanks to Guidant.
On Tuesday, Sept. 25, Robert Kass, M.D., a cardiac surgeon at Cedars-Sinai was able to successfully extract the broken lead and insert the new Guidant device, implanting it in a deeper pocket under muscle to better protect it.
With this new device, "Titia's prognosis is excellent," says Dr. Kass. "Her heart is normal otherwise, so we would anticipate that this new device will last for about five years."
The day after her operation, Titia was able to meet Larry King, his wife Shawn, and representatives from Guidant Corporation. "They're really nice, down-to-earth people," she says of the Kings. "It's awesome that people like them, and companies like Guidant are willing to help people they don't even know. The words 'thank you' aren't enough, but if I ever win the lottery, I'll be donating to both of them!"
Sudden cardiac death is the abrupt loss of heart function, usually due to a potentially fatal electrical rhythm dysfunction in the heart called ventricular fibrillation. Each year, sudden cardiac death claims the lives of as many as 400,000 people in the United States, accounting for more deaths than breast cancer, lung cancer and AIDS combined. Sudden cardiac death is preventable with life-saving, FDA-approved implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs).
ABOUT CEDARS-SINAI:Cedars-Sinai Medical Center is one of the largest non-profit academic medical centers in the Western United States. For the fifth straight two-year period, Cedars-Sinai has been named Southern California's gold standard in health care in an independent survey. It is internationally renowned for its diagnostic and treatment capabilities and its broad spectrum of programs and services, as well as breakthrough biomedical research and superlative medical education. The Medical Center ranks among the top seven non-university hospitals in the nation for its research activities.
ABOUT THE LARRY KING CARDIAC FOUNDATION:The Larry King Cardiac Foundation was established in 1988 to provide funding for individuals who, due to limited means and inadequate insurance, would be otherwise unable to receive life-saving cardiac surgical procedures.. The Larry King Cardiac Foundation is a non-profit organization funded by annual events and the proceeds from Mr. King's books and public speaking engagements. The Foundation works in conjunction with premier cardiac care medical centers and hospitals across the nation to ensure that such patients receive needed medical attention. On the West Coast, The Larry King Cardiac Foundation is affiliated with the Division of Cardiology at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and the Division of Cardiology at Children's Hospital of Los Angeles.
ABOUT GUIDANT CORPORATION:Guidant Corporation pioneers life-saving technology, giving an opportunity for better life to millions of cardiac and vascular patients worldwide. To date, more than seven million patients have been treated with Guidant products. The company, driven by a strong entrepreneurial culture of 10,000 employees, develops, manufactures and markets a broad array of products and services that enable less invasive care for some of life's most threatening medical conditions.
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