Mr Viktor, 72, a former miner and displaced resident from Donetsk region who now lives in Lviv region, suddenly lost consciousness at home after a shower while chopping firewood. An ambulance took him to the local hospital, where doctors detected an acute dissecting aortic aneurysm and referred him for urgent surgery at the University Hospital.
Cardiac surgeons explain that this is a life-threatening condition. During the operation, the patient had his ascending aorta and aortic valve replaced and his coronary arteries reimplanted. According to the doctors, without such intervention the man might not have survived the next 24 hours.
In the postoperative period, fluid began to accumulate in the heart cavity, so another operation was required. The doctors note that his aortic problems had probably been developing for years due to a congenital heart defect.
The head of the cardiac surgery department at the University Hospital, Stanislav Lishchenko, said that the patient had a bicuspid aortic valve which had calcified over time, and against the background of high blood pressure one of the walls of the aorta dissected. The doctor stresses that an emergency operation could have been avoided if the disease had been detected earlier. He says the first step is echocardiography, and if any changes are found, CT angiography of the aorta, which is considered the “gold standard” of diagnosis, should be carried out.
Doctors warn that sudden physical exertion is particularly dangerous for people with an enlarged aorta — chopping firewood, mowing grass, clearing snow. It is precisely during such work that a sudden deterioration can occur.
Mr Viktor has now returned home, has come back to the doctors for a follow-up examination and is feeling well.
“I am alive, the main thing is that I am breathing and gradually recovering. I thank my doctors,” the man says.
Doctors urge residents of Lviv region not to postpone preventive heart check-ups and to seek specialist advice in good time if they have high blood pressure, shortness of breath or unusual fatigue.