[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2020\/04\/henry-bypass-story\/#Article","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2020\/04\/henry-bypass-story\/","headline":"Henry’s Heart Bypass Story","name":"Henry’s Heart Bypass Story","description":"\u201cI proved that anyone can fall over dead,\u201d Henry Wardrop says with a laugh. \u201cThis shouldn\u2019t be about me. It should be about the people that took care of me \u2014 they are the reason I\u2019m alive!\u201d Those people included an off-duty nurse, gym patrons, gym staff, paramedics, and the teams at UPMC Hanover and […]","datePublished":"2020-04-20","dateModified":"2022-06-17","author":{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.upmc.com\/services\/heart-vascular","name":"Heart and Vascular Institute","url":"https:\/\/www.upmc.com\/services\/heart-vascular","sameAs":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/heart-and-vascular-institute\/","parentOrganization":"UPMC"},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"UPMC HealthBeat","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/UPMC-HealthBeat-Logo.png","url":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/UPMC-HealthBeat-Logo.png","width":600,"height":60}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/iStock-1162543608.jpg","url":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/iStock-1162543608.jpg","height":325,"width":754},"url":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2020\/04\/henry-bypass-story\/","about":["Health Topics A-Z","Heart and Vascular Health"],"wordCount":448,"articleBody":"\u201cI proved that anyone can fall over dead,\u201d Henry Wardrop says with a laugh. \u201cThis shouldn\u2019t be about me. It should be about the people that took care of me \u2014 they are the reason I\u2019m alive!\u201dThose people included an off-duty nurse, gym patrons, gym staff, paramedics, and the teams at UPMC Hanover and UPMC Harrisburg.Henry\u00a0didn\u2019t\u00a0know he was going to meet them when he left\u00a0home on June 28 to go to the UPMC Fitness Center for a\u00a0workout.\u00a0\u201cIt was a typical day,\u201d Henry said. \u201cI finished my exercise\u00a0routine on one of the machines, and I just fell over. I don\u2019t\u00a0remember anything after that.\u201d\u00a0Lifesaving CareHenry\u2019s heart had stopped \u2014 sudden cardiac arrest.According to the American Heart Association, out-of\u2013hospital cardiac arrest like Henry\u2019s strikes more than 356,000 people in the United States each year. Nearly 90% of cases are fatal.Fortunately, for people like Henry, when bystanders jump to action with CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) and AED (automated external defibrillator) equipment, the likelihood of survival dramatically increases.When Henry collapsed, a nurse who happened to be there started giving him chest compressions. A fellow gym patron gave him rescue breathing, and the gym staff grabbed the AED.\u201cOne of the people said I was a beautiful shade of blue,\u201d Henry says.Within 10 minutes, the paramedics were rushing him to UPMC Hanover.\u201cThe team at UPMC Hanover quickly opened the blockage in his heart and restored blood flow,\u201d says J. Andre Garabedian, DO, cardiologist, UPMC Heart and Vascular Institute in Hanover. \u201cHowever, we could tell that he had other blockages and would need bypass surgery.\u201dDr. Garabedian reached out to A. Reza Abrishamchian, MD, cardiovascular surgeon, UPMC Heart and Vascular Institute, UPMC Harrisburg, for his expertise.\u201cThe cardiovascular surgeons at UPMC Harrisburg are among the best in the area,\u201d Dr. Garabedian says.Henry was still unconscious, so the decision was up to his wife, Jane.\u201cI had a choice of which hospital,\u201d she says. \u201cBut having seen the good care UPMC Hanover provided him, it made sense to continue that quality of care at UPMC Harrisburg.\u201dAfter doctors stabilized Henry’s condition, he was transported to UPMC Harrisburg.\u201cThe bypass surgery involved taking veins from his legs and using them to reroute the way the blood gets to the heart,\u201d Dr. Abrishamchian says.The operation went smoothly.\u201cHe did really well and went home in a few days,\u201d Dr. Abrishamchian says.Says Henry: \u201cI remember waking up in Harrisburg. The staff there were great, great folks. Just terrific. Dr. Abrishamchian did a terrific job.\u201dEditor's Note: This article was originally published on April 20, 2020, and was last reviewed on June 17, 2022."},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"2020","item":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2020\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"04","item":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2020\/\/04\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Henry’s Heart Bypass Story","item":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2020\/04\/henry-bypass-story\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]