As the face of the Oregon Department of Forestry, Brian Ballou knows what it’s like to be front and center. But he wasn’t expecting to be the center of attention at the Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center heart and vascular program, especially with no history of heart trouble.

However, last February, after returning home from a 10-mile bike ride, Brian’s wife found him unresponsive on the garage floor. His son called 911, then began CPR. Brian was taken directly to Asante Rogue Regional for a STEMI procedure.

He woke up seven days later in the Coronary Care Unit, where he would learn about the quick action of first responders and the heart team. They’d placed a stent and kept Brian in a hypothermic state for several days.

Brian graduated from Cardiac Rehab with flying colors. He rides his exercise bike, goes to the gym, and is once again front and center back at work.

Harry “Woody” Gamble had a history of heart disease and regularly saw his cardiologist. But on March 16, Woody suddenly passed out after finishing a night of bowling and was transported to Sky Lakes Medical Center. After hospitalization and an angioplasty, 79-year-old Woody, who was at high risk for standard surgery, was referred by Klamath Heart Clinic cardiologist George Kubac, MD, to the transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) program at Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center.

After meeting with TAVR valve program coordinator Angel Cross, Medford cardiologist Junyang Lou, MD, and Asante cardiothoracic surgeon, Charles Carmeci, MD, Woody learned that he met the criteria for the minimally invasive TAVR. Woody went in for the procedure Thursday, April 21 and was released from the hospital Saturday, April 23. Two days later, he was walking all over a local store—no longer needing a mobility scooter—breathing normally and without any heaviness in his chest. Woody is amazed that he could have this relatively new procedure in “little old Medford.”

Although he can’t be certain, Woody also feels that he can attribute the recent improvement in his bowling scores to his TAVR.

Learn more about Heart Failure Zones at https://www.asante.org/heart-failure-zones/

STEMI receiving center

Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center has received the prestigious American Heart Association (AHA) Mission: Lifeline® Heart Attack Receiving Center Accreditation for quickly and appropriately treating the most severe type of heart attack known as STEMI (ST-elevation myocardial infarction).

“We underwent numerous on-site reviews by accreditation specialists and provided a decade’s worth of supporting data that shows we have met or exceeded quality of care measures for people experiencing this type of extreme heart attack,” says cardiologist and medical director of Asante’s heart program, Brian Gross, MD, Southern Oregon Cardiology.

A critical performance measurement is called ‘door to balloon time.’ It defines the moment the patient enters the hospital emergency room door to the moment that blood flow is restored to the heart. Asante Rogue Regional reports an average door to balloon time of 45.5 minutes—well below the national guideline of 90 minutes.

Successful health outcomes for STEMI patients are the result of an extensive collaboration among eight participating hospitals and a dozen emergency medical service organizations.

Asante Rogue Regional

✓Receives approximately 170 STEMI patients each year.

✓Designated as an AHA Mission:
Lifeline STEMI receiving center.

Electrophysiology program

For patients with a heart rhythm problem, Asante’s electrophysiology (EP) care program includes:

• Comprehensive diagnostic and therapeutic management of simple and complex heart rhythm disorders
• Device management for heart failure
• Evaluation and management of fainting
• Assessment of a patient’s risk of sudden cardiac death

Asante patients enjoy excellent outcomes because our highly experienced electrophysiologists and staff perform over 100 procedures each month. With more than 1,400 procedures done last year, the EP Lab achieved success rates comparable with the nation’s highest-rated programs.

Eric Pena, MD, and David Martin, MD, both certified in cardiovascular disease and electrophysiology by the American Board of Internal Medicine, lead the program which includes J. Jason West, MD, Mark Moran, MD and Brad Personius, MD.

Procedures include the following:

• Diagnostic EP studies
• Tilt table testing
• Intracardiac ablation
• Pulmonary vein antral isolation or atrial fibrillation ablation
• Lariat procedure (ties off atrial appendages that are a major source of blood clots)
• Device implantation (pacemakers and defibrillators)
• Lead extractions

Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) is available in Southern Oregon at the heart valve clinic at Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center.

In February 2015, Asante Rogue Regional became one of only 290 hospitals in the country to offer TAVR. Since that time, a number of procedures have been performed—all with positive outcomes. Similar to a stent placed in an artery, the TAVR approach delivers a fully collapsible replacement valve through a balloon catheter and then is expanded into the existing space of the aortic valve. The procedure requires only a small incision in the femoral artery. The minimally invasive procedure benefits patients by improving, not only their quality of life, but their length of life as well.

Watch TAVR animation:

_{Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) using a transfemoral approach to the aortic valve. Animation by Edwards Lifesciences (tm) LLC, Irvine, CA}

TAVR is currently approved for use in patients with severe, symptomatic aortic stenosis who are at high risk for standard surgery or are considered inoperable.

Learn more about TAVR>>