Heart Health

Heart Health
Sunday, February 22, 2015

A Special Advertising Publication of The State Media Advertising Department and Lexington Medical Center

A Woman with Heart

Meet the First Female Heart Surgeon in the Midlands

Ask the Doctor
Women and Heart
Disease
With

Dr. Deyanira “Dee”
Prastein
What differences have you noticed
between men and women with
heart disease?
Women tend to delay things, living
with heart disease longer and
presenting later. We see women who
go about their routine chores while
having chest pain or chest discomfort,
ignoring or dismissing it. Sometimes
they live with symptoms until they
become so tired that they physically
can’t do anything. It’s only then that
they see a doctor.
What do women tell you about
why they didn’t see a doctor
sooner?
They seem to be focused on
everyone except themselves. They
put their families first. We see wives
encouraging their husbands to see
a doctor, but women often live with
symptoms until they can no longer
hide them.
How can heart surgery be
different for men and women?
Women do really well with heart
surgery because they seem to tolerate
pain better than men. Also, older
patients often tolerate pain better than
younger ones.
How does smoking affect our
hearts?
Nicotine causes hardening of the blood
vessels, making them more stiff and
narrow. That hardening of the arteries
makes blockages more apparent
sooner. You could say nicotine is the
opposite of nitroglycerin, which allows
blood vessels to become bigger.
What about diabetes?
With diabetes, high levels of sugar
in your bloodstream allow the buildup
of plaque in every blood vessel in
your body, including the arteries in
your heart.
What message do you have for
women about heart disease?
I want women to know that it’s not
normal to have no energy or chest
discomfort such as pain or burning.
If you do, see your doctor. Women
who smoke, have a family history of
heart disease or have diabetes should
be especially careful. Don’t ignore
symptoms. We can treat them and

prevent a major heart attack.

Lexington Medical Center is pleased to announce that
Dr. Deyanira “Dee” Prastein has joined the hospital’s network of care.
She joins Dr. Jeffrey Travis at
Lexington Cardiovascular
Surgery, a Lexington Medical
Center physician practice,
to provide comprehensive
cardiovascular care that meets
the needs of the community.
Dr. Prastein has world-class
training in cardiothoracic surgery,
studying inside some of the most
prestigious heart programs in the
world. Her intensive work includes
experience with the most state-ofthe-art procedures available today.
Prior to joining Lexington
Medical Center, Dr. Prastein was
the lead cardiothoracic surgeon
at Duke Regional Hospital in
Durham, N.C. A graduate of the
Medical College of Virginia, Dr.
Prastein completed a general
surgery residency at the University
of Maryland and cardiothoracic
surgery training at Wake Forest
University School of Medicine.
During her residency, she
participated in extensive research
on heart failure. She then worked
at Papworth Hospital in England,
a facility famous for being one
of the first in Europe to perform
heart transplants.
Dr. Prastein compares open
heart surgery to an orchestra
playing music.
“All of the players in the
operating room have different
roles and everything has to come
together,” she said. “It’s paced so
that things happen at the right time
and tempo. Everyone knows the
steps and what time to do certain
things, and the timing matters.”
Dr. Prastein decided that she
wanted to be a heart surgeon in
medical school.
“I thought that cardiothoracic
surgery was the most amazing
thing you could do as a surgeon
and doctor,” she said. “Our brain

makes us human and the person
you are, but none of that matters if
you don’t have a working heart.”
Lexington Medical Center’s heart
program is affiliated with Duke
Medicine. Dr. Prastein learned
about the hospital while working
there. And she was impressed.
“Lexington Medical Center
is very passionate about and
dedicated to making its heart
program succeed,” she said.
“I love what Lexington Medical
Center has created. My goal is
to make the hospital’s heart
program grow and thrive. There’s
a lot of goodwill and passion for
treating patients with heart
disease, and I want to make sure
I’m part of that success.”
She understands that heart
surgery is a scary proposition for
patients and their families. So, she
works to put them at ease.
“Right before surgery, I talk to
my patients, hold their hand, look
into their eyes and tell them, ‘I’m
going to take good care of you.’”
Working as a doctor has been
a dream of Dr. Prastein since
childhood. She was born in

Nicaragua and lived there until
she was 10, when war led her
family to move.
“When we lived in Nicaragua
and the war started, I wanted to
help people,” she said. “In my eyes,
there were only two people you
could run to for help — priests and
doctors. Obviously, I couldn’t be
a priest, so I wanted to be a doctor.”
Dr. Prastein settled in Fairfax,
Virginia, outside of Washington,
D.C., with her parents and three
brothers. Her mother and father, a
civil engineer, sent her to college at
George Mason University, where
she graduated with a degree in
chemistry.
There, she met her husband,
Jonathan, who works for the United
States Department of Defense.
They’ve been married for nearly 20
years and have a son named Jascha,
who will be 2 years old in March. In
her spare time, Dr. Prastein enjoys
spending time with Jonathan
and Jascha, and running. She has
completed five marathons.
“I am proof that you can do
anything with hard work. I am
truly living the American dream.”

Drs. Deyanira “Dee” Prastein and Jeffrey Travis
Lexington Cardiovascular Surgery

2

Heart Health

Sunday, February 22, 2015

1 Eat Right
2 Chill Out
3 Get Moving
4 Call 9-1-1
the
5 Know
Facts

This month, we’re going to Take 5 for Heart Health.
Will you join us?
Lexington Medical Center is partnering with Midlands businesses in will also encourage community members
to “Know the Facts” about heart disease.
February to provide free heart-healthy activities.
From fitness classes to roller skating and
theatre tickets, the activities are designed
to provide exercise and stress relief.
Lexington Medical Center will also
highlight the importance of calling 9-1-1
if someone is having a heart attack or
stroke. With EKG machines and other
technology in ambulances, paramedics
can begin evaluation quickly while
transporting a patient to the hospital.

The equipment can transmit pertinent
information to doctors before arrival,
allowing treatment to begin promptly.
Lexington Medical Center pioneered this
technology in the Midlands.
It’s the second year that Lexington
Medical Center has showcased the Take
5 for Heart Health campaign. In 2014,
more than 1,000 people attended the
classes and events. This year’s campaign

Take 5 for Heart Health will culminate
with an interactive Heart Fair on Sunday,
March 1 from 12:00 to 4:00 p.m. at the
DoubleTree by Hilton on Bush River Road.
Join us to learn about the latest cardiac
technology, take advantage of free
screenings, taste heart-healthy foods and
listen to presentations from clinicians on
cardiovascular topics.

Learn more and sign up for FREE heart-healthy activities at LexMed.com/Take5.

At A Glance

In South Carolina,
heart disease is an
epidemic.

1 out of every

3 deaths
is related to
cardiovascular disease.
When a cardiac
event occurs,
every second
counts.

Lexington Medical Center’s Heart Program

Since Lexington Medical Center’s open heart surgery
program began in 2012, it’s received national accolades and
earned a reputation as a top heart center.
A Duke Medicine affiliate, Lexington
Medical Center expected to perform
about 100 open heart surgeries each
year. But the program has far exceeded
expectations. To date, the hospital has
performed more than 700 open heart
surgeries.
Lexington Medical Center has also
earned full chest pain accreditation with
percutaneous coronary intervention from
the Society of Cardiovascular Patient
Care. To receive this accreditation,
Lexington Medical Center demonstrated
its ability to quickly assess, diagnose
and treat patients who may be
experiencing a heart attack.
The hospital has continued to build its
heart program by offering a variety of new
services including transcatheter aortic
valve replacement, known as TAVR. This
state-of-the-art cardiovascular technology
allows doctors to replace the aortic valve
without open heart surgery.
Additionally, Lexington Medical Center

offers non-surgical closure for holes in
the heart called atrial septal defects and
patent foramen ovale. Like TAVR, this
minimally invasive procedure eliminates
the need for open heart surgery,
resulting in shorter hospital stays and
faster recovery.
The hospital has also developed an
advanced electrophysiology program
to diagnose and treat patients with
cardiac arrhythmias. The program has
an experienced team of cardiologists
who implants cardiac devices including
pacemakers, defibrillators, and
biventricular pacing systems. Lexington
Medical Center also uses insertable
cardiac monitors, commonly known as
loop recorders, to diagnose heart
rhythm problems.
Importantly, quality oversight is part of
Lexington Medical Center’s affiliation with
Duke Medicine for cardiovascular care.
Twice each year, Duke cardiologists and
heart surgeons come to the hospital to

review heart surgery and catheterization
cases with physicians. The Duke
physicians provide ongoing peer review
and evaluate new procedures for both the
open heart and cath lab programs. When
the hospital performs new procedures for
the first time, a Duke representative is
usually present for support.

Lexington Medical Center’s work with
cardiovascular care extends into the
community with a robust heart-health
education program. Lexington Medical
Center is working to teach its community
about risk factors, prevention and
cardiac technology.

For more information
about Lexington Medical
Center’s heart program,
visit LexMed.com/Heart.

Heart Health

A Special Advertising Publication of The State Media Advertising Department and Lexington Medical Center

3

The Light at the End of the Tunnel
Learning from Heart Disease
Parris McBride recalls the
day she thought she was
going to die.
“All I saw were the white lights of
the cars ahead of us turning into
one big light. And then it got
darker — as if the lights were
closing into a tunnel.”
Parris was in the passenger seat
with her frantic sister and teenage
daughter racing to Lexington
Medical Center. She was clammy,
cold, weak and nearly unconscious.
With severe chest pains and a
terrible headache, the Batesburg
mother was having a serious cardiac
event. And she was only 41 years
old. It was December 9, 2014.
“I didn’t want to die. I have kids
and I need to take care of them.”
Inside the hospital, tests revealed
severe blockages in her arteries.
Parris needed open heart surgery
to survive.
It was the pivotal moment for
heart problems that began months
before.
In October, Parris started having
back, shoulder and neck pain, and
one night, while working in the
kitchen, another weird feeling.
“I thought, ‘My goodness, I’m
having some bad indigestion.’” She
chewed nearly a whole bottle of
Tums®, but it didn’t go away.
At first, she thought she was tired
and stressed. Both of her parents
had died recently, and she was a
busy single mom of two daughters
with a job as a salon manager.
But with a history of heart disease
in her family — including a father
having heart surgery in his 30s and
a grandfather with a heart attack in
his 50s, high blood pressure, high

cholesterol and a smoking habit, she
went to urgent care. Tests revealed
she had suffered a heart attack. She
had two stents placed.
Soon, the symptoms came back.
“I couldn’t even walk up a
flight of steps without not being
able to breathe,” she said. “Even
talking on the phone would make
me out of breath.”
The chest pain continued —
and got so bad that Parris was
vomiting, too.
“It was like someone was stabbing
a knife right between my heart and
my esophagus,” she said. “It didn’t
feel like an elephant on my chest,
but it was the worst pain you could
ever describe.”
With symptoms that had become
unbearable, her sister rushed her to
the hospital, where Parris learned
that more arteries were blocked
and she would need open heart
surgery. Surgeons also needed to fix
a blockage in her carotid artery.
“At first, I had a lot of fear and
anxiety. I had some anger. But I also
had hope that everything would go
away and I’d be better.”
Stories of women such as
Parris who have suffered from
heart disease are a primary reason
Lexington Medical Center is
focusing on educating women about
their hearts in 2015.
Parris is currently attending
cardiac rehabilitation at Lexington
Medical Center Lexington. She’s
recovering from her bypass surgery
and getting stronger every day.
For women like her, she has
advice. “Be aware of what’s around
you to be healthy. You can say
every day that you’re going to quit
smoking or eat right — but you

Parris McBride,
open heart surgery patient
have to commit to it.”
She also turns to her faith. Her
late father was a pastor at Saxe
Gotha Presbyterian Church in
Lexington, where Parris grew up
and graduated from Lexington
High School.
“You ask yourself, ‘Why me, God?
Why did you put this in my life?’
And for the first time in my life, I
can finally say that I know why this
experience happened. It’s my calling
to go around and make women
more aware about heart health.”

“Just Say Know”

Campaign Fights Heart Disease
with Education
Heart disease is the number one cause of death in the United States, yet
most people mistakenly believe cancer is their biggest health threat.
To call greater attention to the importance
of heart health, Lexington Medical Center is
launching a new awareness campaign with a
special emphasis on women.
Using the slogan “Just Say Know to Heart
Disease,” the campaign features advertising,
social media, print and online educational
materials, and community presentations
by hospital professionals. The campaign
emphasizes four main ways people can
protect themselves against heart disease:

KNOW the risk factors for heart disease.
KNOW when to talk to your doctor.
KNOW how to lower your risk.
KNOW when to call 9-1-1.

She adds that her 8-year-old
daughter asked her if what she had
was contagious. She told her “No,”
but that it can be hereditary. So,
she’s working to get her family on a
healthy path, too.
“I have two beautiful children.
This is my third chance at life. I
want to do it right this time.”

To learn more about women
and heart disease, visit
LexMed.com/Heart.

Women
and
Heart Disease
What You Know, You Can Control.

The centerpiece of the hospital’s women’s
campaign is a red dress, the national symbol
for heart disease in women.
“We tend to think of heart disease as a
man’s disease, but that’s not the case,” says
Dr. Amy Epps, cardiologist with Lexington
Cardiology, a Lexington Medical Center
physician practice. “Women need to know that
heart disease is their greatest health threat and
take steps to stay healthy or make important
lifestyle changes, if needed. They should also
talk to their physicians about their risk for
heart disease and what they can do to lower it.”
How Much Do You Know?
Take our online quiz to see how much you
know about your heart health.
Visit LexMed.com/Know.
Schedule A Speaker
To schedule a speaker to talk to your church
group or organization about heart disease,
visit LexMed.Com/Know or call Community
Outreach at (803) 936-8850.

Seeing Red at Lexington Medical Center
In February, visitors to the hospital will see red as banners promoting the “Just Say Know
to Heart Disease” message appear across the campus. These banners will remind the
public to learn more about their heart health.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Show Us What You Know!
Send us photos of yourself when you’re exercising, eating right, relaxing or taking your
blood pressure. We want to see those heart-healthy selfies! Use the hashtag #JustSayKnow.

LexMed.com

4

Heart Health

Sunday, February 22, 2015

Transcatheter Aortic Valve
Replacement at Lexington
Medical Center
For Joe Fields, life doesn’t get much better than when
you’re enjoying the great outdoors — like working on his
Midlands cattle farm or fishing on Lake Murray.
But a problem with his heart made that nearly impossible.
“With my symptoms, I could hardly do anything except sit down.”
The 72-year-old outdoorsman from Saluda had aortic stenosis. That’s
a narrowing of the aortic valve, which is the valve that allows oxygenated
blood out of the heart to the rest of the body. Patients with aortic stenosis
have a valve that doesn’t open properly.
Joe’s aortic stenosis was so severe that it left him with shortness of breath
and chest pain. Simply climbing onto his tractor made him breathless.
Betty, his wife of 53 years, says he even had trouble walking to the mailbox.
And it was worse at night.
“Lying in bed, I’d have to concentrate on breathing hard to get enough
air through to keep me going,” he said.
Aortic stenosis can be a serious problem. As
TAV R
the heart works harder to pump enough blood
p roc e d u r e through the smaller opening in the valve, the heart
eventually becomes weak. Over time, that can lead
to life-threatening heart problems. In fact, the life
expectancy for people with severe, symptomatic
aortic stenosis is less than two years.
At Lexington Medical Center in West Columbia,
Joe learned about transcatheter aortic valve
replacement, known as TAVR. This state-of-theart cardiovascular technology allows doctors to
A delivery catheter is
replace the aortic valve with a catheter instead of
placed in the diseased
aortic valve.
performing open heart surgery. Lexington Medical
Center began performing TAVR last spring.
Currently, TAVR is only for patients with severe
aortic stenosis who are high-risk candidates for
open heart surgery because of their age, history of
heart disease or other health issues.
Joe, who underwent coronary artery bypass
surgery 20 years ago and had stents placed in

1

2

Doctors deploy the
new aortic valve from
the delivery catheter.

Joe Fields, TAVR patient,
with his wife Betty
blocked arteries awhile back, met with a multidisciplinary team of
physicians at Lexington Medical Center who perform TAVR, including
cardiologists and cardiovascular surgeons at Lexington Cardiology and
Lexington Cardiovascular Surgery. He underwent TAVR at the hospital
in October 2014.
Joe spent three days at Lexington Medical Center for the procedure.
Immediately after TAVR was complete, he noticed he could breathe better.
“The next morning when they came in to check my breathing, they said,
‘Man, you’re moving some air today!”
Betty, who says she’s incredibly thankful that Lexington Medical
Center now offers a comprehensive cardiovascular program, has noticed
a difference in her husband, too. Before TAVR, she said Joe had trouble
working on the farm at all. In fact, he had to hand off much of the work
with the cattle to his son. Now, Joe is in the pasture from early morning
until late afternoon with no chest pain, shortness of breath or fatigue.
“It’s a whole different life for me,” he said. “I can get out and do things
again. TAVR is one of the best things I’ve ever done.”

Lexington Medical Center Foundation Supports TAVR Program
The Lexington Medical Center
Foundation has played an important
role in the hospital’s TAVR program.

3
The new aortic
valve functions
immediately.
Illustrations courtesy of
Edwards Lifesciences

L–R: Lexington Medical Center Foundation Chair Thad Westbrook; Lexington Medical Center
Foundation Vice President & Executive Director Tim James; Robert Leonardi, MD, FACC;
Jeffrey Travis, MD; Lexington Medical Center Chief Operating Officer Tod Augsburger

“Realizing the significant importance that TAVR
would have for seniors and other patients with
specific needs, the Foundation board of directors
is happy to support the program financially,” said
Tim James, Lexington Medical Center Foundation
vice president and executive director.

1 Eat Right
Changing the way you eat is an
important step to reduce your risk
of heart disease.
Eating a healthy diet can contribute
to heart health by:
• providing you with energy;
• reducing high blood lipid levels;
• controlling high blood pressure;
• reducing inflammation in the coronary
arteries;

• Carbohydrates—eat plenty of
vegetables and fruit, and moderate
portions of whole-grain products;
avoid refined carbohydrates such as
white breads, white pasta and most
baked goods.

• taking off extra pounds.

• Protein—choose lower fat protein
sources such as skinless chicken
breast, fish, legumes and soy products.

A heart-healthy diet includes a
variety of:

• Fats—the healthier fats are those
found in olive oil, canola, soybean oil,
avocados and nuts.

• Fiber—include plenty of high-fiber
fruit and vegetables in your diet. This is
a great way to fill up without adding too
many calories!

• Water—drink plenty of water (unless
your doctor has recommended a fluid
restriction)!

Sunday • March 1
12:00–4:00 p.m.
DoubleTree by Hilton • 2100 Bush River Road • Columbia, SC 29210

Taste heart-healthy foods and learn how to prepare them
at Lexington Medical Center’s free Heart Fair.

Heart Health

A Special Advertising Publication of The State Media Advertising Department and Lexington Medical Center

Lexington Medical Center Hosts
Heart & Sole Women’s Five Miler April 25
Lexington Medical Center is the new sponsor of the Heart & Sole Women’s Five Miler.
A women’s-only event
The Carolina
held in downtown
Marathon Association
Columbia, the race
launched the state’s
features a five-mile run,
first women’s-only road
a five-mile walk and a
race in South Carolina
three-mile walk. The
in 2002. The Heart &
event takes place on
Sole event grew from
Saturday, April 25 at 8:30
fewer than 400 female
Women’s
Five
Miler
a.m. in Finlay Park.
participants in its first
“We’re excited to host the Heart & Sole Women’s
year to more than 2,300 in 2014. Sponsored in
Five Miler because it not only encourages physical
conjunction with WIS News 10, the race offers
activity and a healthy lifestyle, it also calls attention
women of all athletic abilities the opportunity
to the issue of heart disease — the biggest
to participate in a comforting, supportive
health threat women face today,” says Dr. Dee
environment. Elite athletes as well as first-timers
Prastein, cardiovascular surgeon with Lexington
enjoy the unique event that offers a red rose at the
Cardiovascular Surgery, a Lexington Medical Center finish line and special refreshments that include
physician practice.
chocolate-covered strawberries.

& Sole

For more information about the Lexington Medical Center Heart & Sole Women’s Five Miler,
visit HeartAndSoleRun.com or HeartAndSoleWalk.com.

Choose from
Two Training
Programs

5

Follow Two Women
in Training
Follow the progress of
two women as they train
for their first five-mile
race, the Lexington
Medical Center Heart
& Sole Women’s Five
Miler. Crissie Kirby and
Sherree Thompson,
who write for Lexington
Medical Center’s Every
Woman Blog, will
chronicle the highs and
lows of their journey to
become runners. They’ll
follow the online training
program offered by the
hospital and share their
experience with you.

crissie kirby

sherree
thompson

Follow their progress at
EveryWomanBlog.com and click on
the Heart & Sole Training tab.

Strictly Running

Lexington Medical Center Health Directions

Eight-week training program begins March 8 for
$90. Includes twice-weekly group training sessions.
Register at: StrictlyRunning.com.

A free 10-week self-paced online training program begins February 15.
Includes online tips and advice from a Health Directions trainer.
Download training schedule at: LMCHealthDirections.com.

Rehab Your Heart
Many heart patients wonder when — or if — they will
get back to leading a normal life. That’s where cardiac
rehabilitation comes in.
Lexington Medical Center Cardiac Rehabilitation helps patients reclaim
their lives through individualized plans that incorporate exercise,
education and stress management. Because education is just as
important as exercise, classes teach participants better nutrition, stress
management techniques and medication management, and provide
smoking cessation assistance.
With locations in West Columbia and Lexington, and a new location
opening in Irmo this April, Lexington Medical Center patients have the
opportunity to participate in a program close to where they work and live.
——————————————————————————————

While the hospital has offered cardiac rehabilitation for more than
20 years, this is a new service in the Irmo area.

“We are very excited about bringing Cardiac Rehab to the residents of
the Greater Irmo area. Research shows that heart patients and their families
benefit tremendously from heart-healthy lifestyle modification, and these
programs are associated with better outcomes and improved quality of life,”
said Mark Stout, MS, CCRP, supervisor of Cardiac Rehab in Irmo.
In fact, studies show that patients who participate in cardiac
rehabilitation have a 46 percent reduction in mortality compared with nonparticipants. They often report a reduction in symptoms, increased energy,
better cholesterol and triglyceride levels, improvements in blood pressure,
improved sleep, and a quicker return to work and leisure activities.
——————————————————————————————

Benefits of Exercise, Education & New Habits

Visit LexMed.com/Heart for more information about Lexington Medical
Center’s new Cardiac Rehab program in Irmo.

• Improve confidence and quality of life
• Stabilize blood pressure
• Regulate cholesterol
• Improve overall muscle tone
• Increase capacity for work and recreation

6

Heart Health

Sunday, February 22, 2015

2 Chill Out
Sunday • March 1
12:00–4:00 p.m.
DoubleTree by Hilton
2100 Bush River Road • Columbia, SC 29210

See how relaxation training and
massage therapy can benefit your
heart at Lexington Medical Center’s
free Heart Fair.

Managing life’s stressors is an important step
to reduce your risk for heart disease.
Use this simple breathing technique to relax and lower your heart rate and blood pressure.

1

Find a quiet place and get
comfortable.

Sit up straight and place one
hand on your abdomen and
the other in your lap or by your side.

2

5


Briefly
rest in the stillness at
the end of your exhale.

7

When you exhale, your hand
should go back down.

6

 hen you inhale, the hand
W
on your abdomen should rise.

8

Repeat 15 to 20 times.

Inhale through your nose into
your belly (not your chest)
with a slow, deep breath and count
to five.

3

Exhale, using pursed lips
(like whistling),
even more slowly,
while counting to eight.

4

Ask the Dietitian
At the center of many of our celebrations
with friends and family is one of the greatest
pleasures in life — food!
Eating a healthy and balanced diet is one of the best
things you can do for yourself, reducing your chances
of developing heart disease, stroke, high cholesterol and
high blood pressure. It also gives you the energy to do the
things you enjoy.
————————————————————————
Get helpful advice from Lexington Medical Center dietitians
to lead a heart-healthy lifestyle at Blog.LexMed.com.
————————————————————————
Chocolate has been making its way into the health
benefit category for years — from enhancing your mood
and increasing energy to lowering blood pressure and
reducing your risk of heart attack and stroke. But all
chocolates are not equal. Let’s break down the types of
chocolate to get a better perspective of the health benefits.
Chocolate comes from cocoa beans. The beans have
a strong, pungent taste, which is from the flavanols or
antioxidants. In this state, they have a large amount of the
healthy antioxidants found in wine and tea.
The beans need to be processed a little to make them
palatable; however, the more the cocoa bean is processed,
the fewer health benefits remain. This makes
dark chocolate the best option, but you
should keep your portions small. The
darker the chocolate (70 percent or
greater), the better it is for you.
As we process the bean to
make milk chocolate, we add
more sugar and milk fat, resulting
in less antioxidants. White chocolate has no cocoa solids
and is prepared from cocoa butter. It has virtually no
health benefits.
It’s important to consider that consuming large
amounts of chocolate will not outweigh the cost of
calories and saturated fat. Experts recommend no more
than one ounce of dark chocolate a day.

If you begin to feel lightheaded,
stop, rest a couple of minutes and
start again, but breathe slower.
The goal is to slow your breathing
to six complete breaths (inhalation
and exhalation) per
minute. That’s one
breath every 10
seconds.

&

D2 Me

What you can do about
blood pressure values
1. S
 ee your doctor regularly and do what the
doctor recommends.
2. Take your medication exactly as prescribed
and don’t stop taking it on your own.
3. Eat more fruit and vegetables, substitute
olive oil for vegetable or saturated oils and fats,
increase low-fat (or nonfat) dairy products,
substitute soy or fatty fish for other proteins, and
increase fiber.
4. Reduce or eliminate alcohol.
5. L ose weight. Even a 10-pound reduction will
lower your blood pressure.
6. Further reduce salt in your diet.
7. Exercise at least 30 minutes, 5–7 days
per week.
8. D
 evelop a relaxation strategy for
30 minutes per day, 5–7 days a week.

Diabetes Wellness &
Support Group

Support and Wellness
for People with Type 2 Diabetes
Natalie Copeland, Cancer Registry
manager at Lexington Medical
Center, doesn’t see obstacles; she sees
opportunities. After being diagnosed
with type 2 diabetes and not finding a
support group in the West Columbia/
Lexington area, she decided to create
her own. D2 & Me is a diabetes
wellness and support group for anyone
with type 2 diabetes.
“Diabetes, regardless of type, is a
prevalent disease nationwide that affects
more than 29 million Americans. I
figured there were a lot of people in this
area affected by this disease, especially
since obesity plays a big part in type
2 diabetes, and obesity is a Lexington
County community need that wasn’t
being addressed,” Natalie said.
Since last June, D2 & Me has
provided a forum for people with
type 2 diabetes to talk about their
disease and learn how to care for
themselves. Medical professionals and
hands-on activities, such as exercise,
recipe makeovers, carb counting and
cooking demonstrations, provide the
necessary tools to control diabetes for
a lifetime. The group also plans to go
to a restaurant for dinner each quarter
to practice what they’ve learned in a

Natalie Copeland
relaxed, casual atmosphere.
“I am fortunate that I have been
able to control my diabetes with diet
and exercise. The way I see it, if you
make smarter food choices, improve
your lifestyle and exercise, obesity will
probably take care of itself. I want us to
be able to control our diabetes so that it
doesn’t control us,” she said.
D2 & Me meets the second Tuesday
of each month in Lower Level
Classroom 3 at Lexington Medical
Center's main campus and the third
Wednesday in the Second Floor
Conference Room at Lexington Medical
Center Lexington. Both meetings are
5:45–6:45 p.m. Those with type 2
diabetes and their caregivers can attend.

For more information on upcoming meetings, visit Facebook.com/D2andMe.

Heart Health

A Special Advertising Publication of The State Media Advertising Department and Lexington Medical Center

7

3 Get Moving
Benefits of Regular Cardiovascular Exercise
Regular cardiovascular exercise can decrease your risk
of cardiac-related problems and issues related to other
chronic diseases.
Furthermore, regular cardiovascular
exercise for those with a previous
cardiac history decreases the
likelihood of a second event or
intervention. In fact, if exercise
could be packed in a pill, it would
be the most widely prescribed and
beneficial medicine in the country.
“Regular exercise has similar
effects as taking medications when
it comes to reducing the risk of
cardiac-related health problems
and other chronic diseases,” said
Amanda Castles, MPH, health
promotion consultant at Health
Directions, Lexington Medical
Center’s fitness and wellness gym.
“Your activity level is one risk factor
you can control.
“It is important to choose types
of exercise that you enjoy. When you
enjoy your activity, it feels less like a
chore and you’re more likely to stick
to your routine,” said Castles.

Exercise for at least 30 minutes,
five to six days each week. Start
slowly and progress carefully. If
the exercise becomes painful, slow
down or stop and proceed more
slowly or seek proper instruction.
Calorie-Counter Activity Guide
Activity Calories Used Per Hour*
————————————————————

Walking Slowly (2½ mph) 210–230
————————————————————

Brisk Walking (4 mph)

250–345

————————————————————

Jogging (6 mph)

315–480

————————————————————

Cycling (9 mph)

315–480

————————————————————

Gardening (heavy)

450–525

————————————————————

Basketball 480–625
————————————————————

Aerobic Dancing

480–625

————————————————————

Swimming 480–625
————————————————————

Cross-country Skiing

480–625

————————————————————

*Expenditures in calories by a
150-pound person

Exercise
Recommendations
• Strive for 30 minutes or
more of moderate-intensity
physical activity on most
days of the week. Examples
of moderate exercise are
brisk walking, jogging,
cycling or other aerobic
activity. If you have joint
pain, choose low-impact
exercises such as walking,
bicycling and swimming.
• Include activity in your
social plans with family and
friends. Burn 210 to 625
calories with an hour of
physical activity, depending
on the activity.
• As weight loss occurs,
the body becomes more
efficient at using energy
and the rate of weight
loss may decrease.
Increasing physical activity
may be helpful.

Known benefits of regular
cardiovascular exercise may include:
• Increased energy;
• Increased muscular
strength and endurance;
• Increased lean body
mass (muscle);

Sunday • March 1
12:00–4:00 p.m.
DoubleTree by Hilton • 2100 Bush River Road • Columbia, SC 29210

• Decreased stress on
the heart during regular
Activities of Daily Living
(ADLs);
• Increased metabolism;
• Decreased body fat;

Participate in free and fun exercise sessions
at Lexington Medical Center’s free Heart Fair.

• Decreased insulin
resistance for diabetics
(improves blood sugars);
• Decreased fall risk;

• Increased good
cholesterol (HDL),
which lowers bad
cholesterol (LDL);
• Improved blood
pressure;
• Improved mood
and self-esteem by
reducing or preventing
depression or anxiety;
• Builds bone density
and counteracts
osteoporosis;
• Increased balance
control.

A Perfect Fit

Columbia Woman Finds the Right
Gym in Health Directions
Although Glenda Grant eased slowly into fitness when she first joined
Health Directions, you’d never know it to see her now.
The 68-year-old dynamo takes three or four
classes a day at the gym during the week,
enjoying a variety of different offerings.
“On Mondays, I take a TRX class at 7:00 a.m.,
then I take an 8:15 a.m. strength class. At
9:15 a.m. I do yoga, and at 11:15 a.m., I stay
for a cardio dance class,” says Glenda, a retired
home health nurse who drives 20 minutes from
southeast Columbia to visit the gym. Health
Directions, a fitness and wellness gym backed
by Lexington Medical Center, is located in West
Columbia about a mile from the hospital on
Highway 378.
Not all members of Health Directions are
as active as Glenda, but she’s typical of those
who enjoy the gym’s relaxed and comfortable
environment.
“I didn’t know anyone who went there when
I first joined, but I saw the atmosphere and I
liked it,” she says. “The staff was friendly and
I wasn’t self-conscious about what I could and
couldn’t do.”
With more than 35 years of experience,
Health Directions is more than a gym. The
certified staff knows how to deal with a variety
of physical conditions. The facility offers safe,
effective and motivating classes and programs.
The gym also offers members and their spouses
free annual health screenings.

Glenda Grant at
Health Directions

Visit LMCHealthDirections.com or call
(803) 791-2113 for more information on
classes, personal training and other services.

One-week guest passes
are available.
3239 Sunset Boulevard • West Columbia, SC
(803) 791-2113 • LMCHealthDirections.com
A Fitness & Wellness Gym Backed by

8

Heart Health

Sunday, February 22, 2015

4 Call 9-1-1
With Stroke, Every Second Counts
Every four minutes, someone dies of a stroke.
It’s the 4th leading cause of death in the U.S.
and the leading cause of disability.

When it comes to
heart attack and
stroke, calling 9-1-1 instead

of driving yourself or a loved one to a
nearby emergency room can be the
difference between life and death.

Early Signs of a
Heart Attack
• Chest pain
• Jaw pain
• Anxiety
• Weakness
• Shortness of breath
• Pain in one or both arms

• Nausea
• Back pain
• Dizziness
• Sweating

At Lexington Medical Center’s certified Primary
Stroke Center, health care professionals work
together to improve patient outcomes through
the rapid diagnosis, treatment and early
rehabilitation of stroke patients.
Lexington Medical Center
achieved Primary Stroke Center
certification after completing a
rigorous process that includes
annual organization-wide
evaluations of care processes,
functions, and specific assessments
of patient care and outcomes.
“This certification is important
to improve patient quality care
outcomes. Research shows that
PSCs more rapidly diagnose stroke
and provide appropriate treatment
more quickly,” said Vicky Hicks, RN,
CPHQ, stroke outcomes coordinator
at the hospital.
At Lexington Medical Center’s
PSC, stroke care begins before a patient even
arrives at the hospital. EMS call ahead to let
clinicians know they are bringing in a potential
acute stroke patient. The Emergency department’s

acute stroke team greets them on arrival and
rapidly identifies if the potential stroke patient may
be eligible for thrombolytics, a clot-busting drug
that reduces disability and facilitates timely stroke
treatment. A CT scan determines the type of
stroke and appropriate treatment is implemented.
Stroke care continues after the patient has been
admitted to the hospital’s dedicated
stroke unit or ICU. “Rehabilitation
services and medical social services
talk with each stroke patient to
evaluate for any needs and assist
with discharge to the appropriate
level of care. A registered nurse also
provides individualized education
about stroke prior to discharge,”
said Hicks.
If you or someone you know
experiences sudden stroke
symptoms, call 9-1-1 immediately.
Quick treatment of certain types
of stroke can prevent disability.
Symptoms include numbness or
weakness of the face, arm or leg,
especially on one side of the body;
confusion, trouble speaking; difficulty seeing in
one or both eyes; severe headache with no known
cause; and trouble walking, dizziness, loss of
balance or coordination.

Sunday • March 1
12:00–4:00 p.m.

Stroke Risk Factors
• Heart disease
• Diabetes
• Heavy alcohol use
• Smoking
• High blood pressure
• High cholesterol
• Physical inactivity and obesity
• Atrial fibrillation (irregular heartbeat)
• Family history of stroke

DoubleTree by Hilton • 2100 Bush River Road • Columbia, SC 29210

Check out life-saving Emergency Medical Services equipment and learn the
importance of calling 9-1-1 at Lexington Medical Center’s free Heart Fair.

It’s About Location, Location, Location
Lexington Cardiology, a Lexington Medical Center physician practice, has moved to a
state-of-the-art suite inside Lexington Medical Park 1 on the hospital’s main campus.
Featuring dedicated clinical
pods for each physician, the
new office also houses three
echovascular labs and a nuclear
medicine suite.
“The layout of the new space
is efficient for patient flow
because each pod has clinical
and clerical support for the
physician within that pod,” said
Stephen E. Van Horn Jr., MD,
FACC, a cardiologist at Lexington
Cardiology. Patients can now talk
to a nurse, see a doctor, meet
with a scheduler and check out
in the same area of the office at
every visit.
Inside the exam rooms, new computers give physicians and clinical
staff access to the practice’s electronic health record and imaging
systems. Clinicians are able to show patients their images and other
health information during their visit, which helps them to better
understand their treatment plan. By receiving primary and specialty care
within Lexington Medical Center’s physician network, patients benefit
from having their medical records from physician visits connected to the
hospital and its community medical centers.
An additional benefit of the new Lexington Cardiology office is its
proximity to the main hospital. It’s
just next door. “As a cardiologist, it
is nice to be able to walk over to the
Progressive Cardiac Unit or the Cardiac
Catheterization Lab to care for our
patients,” said Dr. Van Horn. “We can
be more responsive and available to our
A Lexington Medical Center
patients wherever they are.”
Physician Practice

West Columbia
2728 Sunset Blvd., Suite 300
West Columbia, SC 29169
(803) 744-4940

Downtown Columbia
2601 Laurel Street, Suite 260
Columbia, SC 29204
(803) 744-4900

LMCLexingtonCardiology.com

Heart Health

A Special Advertising Publication of The State Media Advertising Department and Lexington Medical Center

9

The Heart with a Beat of Its Own
“I’ve had a heart murmur since I was five.”
Suzie Gammon of Irmo has lived most of her life knowing
that her heart sounded different.
“I was never restricted in sports
or participating in gym class at
school,” she said. “I was just aware
that I had a heart murmur.”
Suzie had rheumatic fever as a
young child in the 1950s, which
can sometimes damage the aortic
valve in the heart, creating a
murmur. Also, as we age, our
heart valves can calcify, creating a
narrowing of the valves.
At age 62, she’s led a busy and
active life in Irmo. Suzie and her
husband Tom have two grown
daughters, Ashley and Meredith,
and a granddaughter named
Gammon. She also worked as the
office manager of an architecture
company for 28 years.
In the spring of 2014, Suzie began
seeing a new doctor. Listening to
her heart, the doctor told Suzie he
wanted her to see a cardiologist
because of the “whooshing noise”
her heart was making.
Suzie was referred to Lexington
Cardiology, a Lexington Medical
Center physician practice, where an
echocardiogram showed that Suzie
had aortic stenosis, a narrowing of
the aortic valve.
At the practice, Dr. Robert
Leonardi noted that Suzie reported
a decrease in her energy level and
exercise tolerance over the past
few years. Doctors believed it was
related to her heart valve.
Dr. Leonardi told Suzie it was
time to do something about it.
“I was so shocked. I said, ‘No, not
me. This happens to other people.’

It was really scary.”
Dr. Leonardi referred Suzie to
Dr. Jeffrey Travis at Lexington
Cardiovascular Surgery, where she
learned she needed open heart
surgery to replace her aortic valve.
“Dr. Travis took a lot of time to
explain everything to me,” she said.
“He told me, ‘You’re going to come
through this with flying colors.’”
Suzie had open heart surgery
at Lexington Medical Center on
July 31, 2014.
“Dr. Travis prayed with me
before surgery. After that, I had a
real calmness. I thought, ‘I’m going
to be fine. I’m going to make it.’”
And she did. She was weak at
first when she came home from
the surgery, but every day got a bit
better.
Before the heart issues arose,
Suzie and her husband had a special
trip planned for October — a cruise
through New England, departing
from New York City. When Suzie
was recovering from heart surgery
in August, she didn’t know if she
would be able to go.
So she did her best to listen to
doctors’ orders.
“They told me to get up and walk
every hour when I came home. You
build up your strength and stamina
by doing what they tell you.”
Sure enough, it worked. On
October 1 — just two months after
open heart surgery — Suzie left
for the wonderful trip with her
husband. And they had a great time.
The whole experience has

Suzie Gammon at her
home in Irmo

Suzie reminding women of some
important messages.
“I think it’s important to get
regular physical exams,” she said.
“That way, your doctor knows you
and your body — and can recognize
if something is different. You also
need to find out what can be done
to fix it.”

Doctors told Suzie it would
take nearly a whole year to feel
100 percent better. But she’s almost
back. She’s returned to her favorite
hobbies — gardening, shopping
and spending time with her
granddaughter.
“If you put your mind to it,
everything will work out fine.”

Put Your Heart Health to Bed

There’s more to heart health than eating right and exercising.
Not getting enough sleep is associated with a number of
chronic diseases, including cardiovascular disease.
“During sleep, there is a normal
drop in a person’s blood pressure.
Those who don’t get enough sleep
or have interruptions when they
sleep lack this normal physiological
response, which increases their
chance of developing hypertension,”
said Mohamed Soliman, MD,
FCCP, at Lexington Sleep Solutions.
Symptoms of sleep deprivation
include lack of concentration,
daytime sleepiness/tiredness,
impaired cognitive functions,
headaches, irritability and
mood swings.
There are several ways to identify
sleep disorders. The Epworth
Sleepiness Scale determines the
level of daytime sleepiness in
specific situations. If you score
more than 10 on the scale, you
have excessive daytime sleepiness
and need to be evaluated by a sleep
physician. Snoring, witnessed
pauses of breathing during sleep,

morning headaches and lack of
concentration are also indications
of obstructive sleep apnea.
OSA is a known risk factor for
heart disease. “It makes the heart
work harder and may increase
a person’s risk for arrhythmias
such as atrial fibrillation. Those
with underlying coronary artery
disease may also be at risk for
ischemic events such as myocardial
infarctions,” said Dr. Soliman.
OSA can also increase your risk
for pulmonary hypertension.
“People with pulmonary
hypertension have elevated pressure
in the right side of the heart, which
is the side that pumps blood into
the lungs,” said Richard Monk,
MD, pulmonologist at Carolina
Pulmonary, a Lexington Medical
Center physician practice.
People with OSA can have long
periods with low oxygen, causing
constriction of blood vessels and

thickening of blood vessel walls in
the lungs. That makes the heart work
harder to get blood into the lungs.
Untreated, it can lead to increased
risk for heart attack or stroke.
Treating OSA can improve
pulmonary hypertension.
Since poor sleep can contribute
to heart disease and heart disease, in
turn, can disturb sleep, it’s important
to get a better night’s sleep. Avoid
napping during the day and
caffeine too close to bedtime. Don’t
watch TV in bed. Regular exercise
encourages good sleep, but vigorous
exercise late in the evening can
hinder good sleep. Dr. Soliman also
recommends a regularly scheduled
bedtime every night and a dark,
cool, quiet sleep environment.

While the amount of sleep a
person needs is individualized,
less sleep is needed with age. In
general, adults require a minimum
of 6.5 hours of restful sleep.

LexingtonSleepSolutions.com

A Lexington Medical Center Physician Practice

CarolinaPulmonaryLMC.com

Epworth Sleepiness Scale for Daytime Sleepiness Evaluation
This questionnaire allows you
to rank certain situations and
how likely you are to fall asleep
during any of these events.
Consider each situation and use
the provided scale to measure
whether you may doze off or are
just feeling tired.
—————————————
To check your sleepiness score,
compare your total points to the
scale below:
—————————————
1 – 6 You are getting
enough sleep.
—————————————
7 – 8 Your score is average.
—————————————
9 or higher Seek the advice of
a sleep specialist
without delay.


Scale Chance of Dozing

0=
no chance of dozing

1=
slight chance of dozing

2=
moderate chance of dozing

3=
high chance of dozing
———————————————————
Situation
1. Sitting and reading
______
2. Watching television

______

3. S itting inactive in a public place
such as a theatre or in a meeting

______

4. Riding as a passenger in a vehicle
for an hour without a break

______

5. L ying down in the afternoon for a nap ______
6. Sitting and talking with someone

______

7. S itting quietly after a lunch that did
not include an alcoholic beverage

______

8. S itting in a car while waiting in traffic ______
TOTAL
______

10

Heart Health

Sunday, February 22, 2015

5 Know the Facts
When it comes to taking care of your heart, knowledge is power.
Learning the risk factors for heart disease, the importance of talking to
your doctor about your heart health and how to perform CPR can help
you and your family live a longer, healthier life.
Know the risk factors for
heart disease.
Risk factors make you more likely to
develop a disease. They can also increase
the chances that a disease will get worse.
The good news is that 80 percent of heart
attacks and strokes can be prevented and
treated by learning about your risks and
taking action to control them.
Know CPR.
Push hard and push fast. When you push
on the chest, you pump blood to the brain
and heart.
People often don’t push hard enough
because they’re afraid of hurting
someone, but it’s better to push too hard
than not hard enough. Your actions can
only help.
Conventional CPR also involves giving
breaths; however, if someone needs CPR,
you can do a lot of good by just pushing
hard and pushing fast.

Know when to talk to your doctor.
Don’t be afraid to have an honest
conversation with your doctor about heart
disease. You will also need to have certain
screenings or tests to learn if you’re
at risk. Getting these screenings and
knowing their results are the first steps in
taking control of your heart health.
Tests to help you lead a healthy
lifestyle:

Follow these steps to perform CPR
1. Make sure the person is lying on his/her
back on a firm, flat surface.
2. Move clothes out of the way.
3. Put the heel of one hand on the lower half
of the breastbone. Put the heel of your
other hand on top of the first hand.
4. Push straight down at least 2 inches at a
rate of at least 100 pushes a minute.

Sunday • March 1
12:00–4:00 p.m.

• Cholesterol—every five years starting
at age 20.

• Waist circumference—as needed
starting at age 20.
• Blood glucose—every three years
starting at age 45.

Put the other hand on top of
the first hand.

5. After each push, let the chest come back
up to its normal position.

• Blood pressure—every time you visit
a doctor starting at age 20.

• Weight/Body Mass Index (BMI)—
every time you visit a doctor starting at
age 20.

Put the heel of one hand on the
lower half of the breastbone.

DoubleTree by Hilton • 2100 Bush River Road • Columbia, SC 29210

Interested in learning CPR?
Attend Lexington Medical Center’s FREE Heart Fair.
Instructors will be there to teach citizen CPR.

Calling it Quits:

Lexington Medical Center Offers Help for Smokers
Jackie Watts smoked cigarettes for
20 years. But that changed on
September 1, 2013. That’s the day
the 47-year-old Lexington County
woman suffered a heart attack.
“While out shopping, I felt like I had
indigestion, my chest and back hurt, and I was
sweating,” she said.
After an ambulance rushed her to the
hospital, tests revealed two blockages in her
heart. The news came as a surprise to Jackie.
She was not overweight and did not have high
blood pressure or high cholesterol.
Doctors believed that smoking was a major
factor — and told her that she had to quit.
They recommended a smoking-cessation
class offered at Lexington Medical Center’s
community medical center in Lexington.
The class meets once a week for two hours
and lasts eight weeks. It is open to anyone
who wants to quit smoking and, because of a
generous grant from the Lexington Medical
Center Foundation, there is no cost to
participate. Participants also have an aboveaverage success rate.
A Lexington Medical Center Lexington
cardiac rehabilitation nurse began the program
in 2013.
“The class helped me learn what to do when
I had a craving,” Jackie said.
Tips included changing your
routines, chewing gum, not
carrying cigarettes
with you and not
allowing yourself to
smoke in your car
or house. It wasn’t
easy, but it
worked.

Jackie Watts at her
home in Gilbert
The smoking-cessation program is just
one way Lexington Medical Center is helping
smokers make healthier choices. The hospital
also offers lung cancer screenings with a lowdose CT scan to help detect lung cancer in its
early stages.
Qualified lung cancer screening patients
should be between the ages of 55–74 and have
a 30 pack-year smoking history. If the patient
is a former smoker, he or she must have quit
within the past 15 years. Or patients should
be age 50 or older and have a 20 pack-year
smoking history with one additional risk
factor. Additional risk factors include radon
exposure, occupational exposure, personal
cancer history, family history of lung cancer,
and lung disease history.
A pack-year is calculated by multiplying the
number of packs of cigarettes smoked per day
by the number of years the person has smoked.
For example, 1 pack-year is equal to smoking
one pack per day for 1 year or two packs per
day for a half year.
Lung cancer remains the leading cause of
cancer death in the U.S. because only a small
number of patients with lung cancer are
diagnosed with early-stage disease. A national

study showed a decrease in mortality by 20
percent when lung cancer was diagnosed early.
Jackie was successful. She has not smoked
a cigarette since completing the Lexington
Medical Center smoking-cessation program last
November. And she feels great.
“Considering it’s free, I don’t know why more
people don’t take this class. It’s very beneficial.”

For information about lung cancer screenings,
please call (803) 936-8050.

Upcoming Smoking-Cessation Classes
Tuesdays, March 24 to May 12
4:00–6:00 p.m.

————————————————

Lexington Medical Center Lexington

811 West Main Street
Executive Conference Room, 2nd floor
————————————————
If you or someone you know wants to
quit smoking and participate in
Lexington Medical Center’s smoking-cessation
program, please call (803) 358-6180.

Heart Health

A Special Advertising Publication of The State Media Advertising Department and Lexington Medical Center

11

know your
Numbers
your goals
should be:

Blood Pressure:
optimal

120/80

no higher than

140/90

Total Cholesterol:
less than

200

LDL Cholesterol:
less than

100 or
less than

70

if you have other risk factors

HDL Cholesterol:
more than

60

optimal
————
less than

50
a risk for women
————
less than

40

a risk for men

Triglycerides:
less than

150
more important for women
Blood Glucose:

“What You Don’t Know”
You’ve been behind all day —
rushing to get the kids to school,
make it to work before your first
meeting. Now it’s time for dinner,
and you’ve got nothing.
As you frantically search the aisles
at the supermarket, the tightness in
your chest that you’ve been ignoring
starts to get worse. You feel anxious
and lightheaded. You start gasping
for breath.
This is your heart attack.
Lexington Medical Center’s
newest heart commercial tells
the story about what happens to
people during a heart attack. The
commercial, which was produced
in-house by the hospital, follows
patients from the moment they have
a heart attack to what happens inside
an ambulance, emergency room and
cardiac catheterization lab.

fasting value

Check out
“I Am A Heart Attack 2015”

YouTube.com/
LexingtonMedical

It begins by calling 9-1-1. With
EKG machines and other technology
in ambulances, paramedics can
begin evaluation quickly while
transporting a patient and deliver
pertinent information to doctors
before arrival, allowing treatment
in the emergency room and cardiac
catheterization lab to
begin promptly.
Access to complete cardiovascular
care is especially important in S.C.
One out of every three deaths in
the state is related to cardiovascular
disease.
“As the region’s only Duke
Medicine-affiliated heart center,
Lexington Medical Center is able
to provide patients with quality
cardiovascular care, and the most
advanced treatments and protocols
medicine has to offer,” said Shelley.

Meet the Lexington Medical Center

Cardiac Care Team

less than

100

“It’s important to know the
symptoms associated with heart
attacks to reduce your risk of
developing heart disease, but it’s
also important to understand
what happens when someone has
a heart attack,” said Mark Shelley,
vice president of Marketing and
Communications at Lexington
Medical Center.

Dedicated to providing high quality cardiovascular care to our community, these Lexington Medical Center
physician practices combine clinical expertise and state-of-the-art technologies with compassionate care.

Body Mass Index:
(BMI) less than

25

A Lexington Medical Center Physician Practice

A Lexington Medical Center Physician Practice
A Lexington Medical Center Physician Practice

Waist Circumference:
less than

35¨
for women

————
less than

40¨
for men

Daily Exercise:

C. West Jacocks IV, MD, FACC,
and Mitchell W. Jacocks, MD

Front Row (L–R): Richard E. Umbach, MD, FACC; Amy Rawl Epps, MD,
FACC; S. Stanley Juk Jr., MD, FACC Second Row (L–R): Robert M. Malanuk,
MD, FACC; Joseph J. Lawton III, MD, FACC, FSCAI; William D. Brearley Jr.,
MD, FACC; Stephen E. Van Horn Jr., MD, FACC; R. Taylor Williams, MD, FACC
Third Row (L–R): Robert A. Leonardi, MD, FACC; Michael C. Roberts, MD,
FACC; William W. Brabham, MD

Deyanira J. Prastein, MD, and
Jeffrey Travis, MD

SumterCardiology.com

LMCLexingtonCardiology.com

LexingtonCardiovascular.com

more than

30
minutes optimal
————

strive for at least

20
minutes

Daily Relaxation:
more than

30

minutes

Cigarettes Per Day:

0

and no secondhand smoke

540 Physicians Lane
Sumter, SC 29150
(803) 778-1941

2601 Laurel Street, Suite 260
Columbia, SC 29204
(803) 744-4900

2728 Sunset Boulevard, Suite 300
West Columbia, SC 29169
(803) 744-4940

Join Lexington Medical Center
for the free Physician Lecture
Series on Monday, March 23
at 6:00 p.m.!
Dr. Nichole P. McDonald with Lexington
Women’s Care will present "What to Expect
When You Are Not Expecting It: A Woman’s
Changing Body."

2728 Sunset Boulevard, Suite 101
West Columbia, SC 29169
(803) 936-7095

Physician
Lecture Series
Lexington Medical Center is pleased to present a
monthly lecture series featuring physicians speaking about
medical topics that are important to our community.
Light refreshments are served and attendees have the
opportunity to ask the presenting physician questions.

For more information on the Physician Lecture Series, visit LexMed.com/Events.

12

Heart Health

Sunday, February 22, 2015

Learn how to reduce your risk
of developing heart disease.

Sunday • March 1
12:00–4:00 p.m.
DoubleTree by Hilton
2100 Bush River Road
Columbia, SC 29210

Discover the latest heart-health information:
Participate
in free activities:
• Stroke prevention
• A dvanced technologies for
• Massage therapy
diagnostic, interventional &
• Emergency Medical
• Relaxation training
surgical procedures
Services & 9-1-1
• Citizen CPR lessons
•M
 ini-lectures from physicians
& clinicians
• Blood pressure screenings
• Healthy food demonstrations & tastings
• Kids’ Corner

LexMed.com
Thank You!
Business
Partners

Alive Again: Grocery
Store Tour

Lexington Medical Center
Nutrition Services

Rawls Creek Golf Club

Broadway in Columbia

Matrx Coaching

Stacked Fitness

Charleston Cooks

Mid Carolina Golf Club

Columbia Classical Ballet

Pawmetto Lifeline

The Classy Cruet Olive
Oils & Vinegars

Columbia Museum of Art

PETS, Inc

Fleet Feet Sports of
Columbia

Phoenix Adventures

Harvest Hope Food Bank

PLEX Indoor Sports –
Sandhills

Lexington Medical Center
Health Directions

PLEX Indoor Sports – Irmo

SKA Fitness

Upstream: A Center for
Mindfulness Practice and
Holistic Mental Health
Vital Energy

Participating Organizations
American Red
Cross
Brown Box
Veggies
Matrx Coaching
The Balance
Institute
The Classy Cruet
Olive Oils &
Vinegars
Vital Energy
Whole Foods

Lexington Medical Center Departments
and physician Practices
Cancer Services
Carolina
Pulmonary
Cardiac Rehab
Cardiovascular OR
Catheterization
Lab
Center for Best
Practice

Child Development
Center
Community
Outreach
Diabetes
Educators
Echovascular
Lexington
Cardiology
Lexington Medical
Center Foundation

Lexington Sleep
Solutions
Nutrition Services
Physician Lectures
Radiology
South Carolina
Obesity Surgery
Center
Sumter Cardiology