Keith Robillard, 65, is an active husband and father from False River. “For years, I experienced intermittent chest pain, but ignored my symptoms and continued working full time at my air conditioning & heating business as well as walking three miles per day,” said Keith.
Once Keith began to experience increased chest pain and fatigue, and could no longer walk without needing to stop to rest, he went to his primary care doctor, who then sent him to the emergency room. Further tests revealed he had suffered a heart attack and was in cardiogenic shock, a condition in which the heart cannot pump enough blood and oxygen to the brain and other vital organs.
At Lane Cardiovascular Center, Dr. Charles Thompson implanted the Impella CP with SmartAssist devise to allow Keith’s heart to rest before placing stents to clear his blockage. Two days later Keith went home to his family, and a short time later he returned to work.
“I am very thankful for the team at Lane Cardiovascular Center and at Cardiovascular Institute of the South,” said Keith. “They’re like my second family.”
