[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2020\/07\/back-on-the-slopes-after-a-heart-attack\/#Article","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2020\/07\/back-on-the-slopes-after-a-heart-attack\/","headline":"Back on the Slopes After a Heart Attack","name":"Back on the Slopes After a Heart Attack","description":"UPMC Passavant helps a double-black diamond skier overcome his biggest challenge At age 47, the last thing Russ Graswick expected was to have a heart attack. Just two weeks earlier he was skiing hard out west in the Colorado mountains, tackling double black diamond runs at Beaver Creek Resort. But he woke up early that […]","datePublished":"2020-07-22","dateModified":"2022-04-12","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\/2020\/06\/Russ-Graswick-Photo-1.jpeg-scaled.jpg","url":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Russ-Graswick-Photo-1.jpeg-scaled.jpg","height":1536,"width":2048},"url":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2020\/07\/back-on-the-slopes-after-a-heart-attack\/","about":["Health Topics A-Z","Heart and Vascular Health"],"wordCount":411,"articleBody":"UPMC Passavant helps a double-black diamond skier overcome his biggest challenge At age 47, the last thing Russ Graswick expected was to have a heart attack. Just two weeks earlier he was skiing hard out west in the Colorado mountains, tackling double black diamond runs at Beaver Creek Resort.But he woke up early that morning in February 2019 with an uncomfortable squeezing pressure in his chest. \u201cI thought I had pulled something,\u201d says Russ. \u201cI went back to sleep, but a half hour later it came back even more intense.\u201dHis wife Dione drove him to nearby UPMC Passavant, just minutes from their McCandless home. By the time they pulled into the lot, the pressure had eased. \u201cI was wondering about turning around when I thought of a buddy of mine who was in good shape but had a major heart attack at 52 and dropped dead. So, I went in,\u201d says Russ.Inside UPMC Passavant\u2019s emergency department, a cardiac care team jumped into action. Although an EKG initially appeared normal, bloodwork confirmed he\u2019d had a heart attack. They stabilized him with medication before moving him to the cardiac catheterization lab.Bryan Robertson, MD, an interventional cardiologist, performed a cardiac catheterization procedure to examine Russ\u2019 heart and identify the problem. He found two blockages \u2014 one 95 percent clogged, the other 85 percent \u2014 in the left anterior descending artery, which supplies blood to the heart.Russ, who remained conscious throughout the procedure, watched on a monitor as Dr. Robertson inserted a thin, inflatable balloon into his clogged artery and then opened it to \u201cpush\u201d plaque away. He then inserted two stents to keep the artery open.Three days later, Russ returned home on a blood thinner and other medicine to control his blood pressure and cholesterol. He continued with outpatient cardiac rehabilitation over the next three months.A year later, Russ says he \u201cfeels great.\u201d Since his hospital stay, he joined a gym and exercises regularly. He is more mindful of what he eats \u2014\u00a0opting now for fish instead of red meat \u2014 and has lost 30 pounds. Russ started the new year back in Colorado with a ski trip to Telluride and recently returned again for more skiing at Beaver Creek and Vail.\u201cUPMC Passavant did a wonderful job and I\u2019m so thankful for the first-class care I received there,\u201d says Russ. \u201cDr. Robertson was fabulous and everyone in the emergency department and cath lab was great. They really take wonderful care of patients.\u201d"},{"@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":"07","item":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2020\/\/07\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Back on the Slopes After a Heart Attack","item":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2020\/07\/back-on-the-slopes-after-a-heart-attack\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]