Matters of the Heart: TTH’s First Open Heart-Pump Surgery Patient More Than 50 Years Later
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In November 1959 at the age of 12, Sandra Schermbeck underwent the first open heart-pump surgery performed at The Toledo Hospital (TTH). At the time, TTH was the only health care provider in Toledo that owned a surgical heart-lung machine.
Sandra was born with a narrow pulmonary valve in her heart, which controls the blood flow from the right side of the heart into the lungs. The normal size of a pulmonary valve is about three-quarters of an inch in diameter. In Shermbeck’s case, the opening of her valve was smaller than the head of a match.
“Prior to my surgery, there were so many everyday activities that I could not participate in because of the lack of blood flow to my heart,” says Sandra. “If it was not for the surgery, I would have never known what it really felt like to be a kid.”
As a result of her narrow pulmonary valve, Sandra’s heart was strained severely and her heart was failing. Such a heart condition was highly uncommon and the majority of people who suffered from this same condition died before reaching adulthood.
To date, Sandra is living a healthy, normal life—more than 50 years after her surgery. She is married with three children and four grandchildren.
“I don’t remember much about the surgery, besides it saved my life,” relays Sandra.
Sandra’s surgery was performed by a team of 14 staff members, following three years of preparation and research. While doctors operated, the grant-funded heart-lung machine pumped blood and oxygen through Sandra’s body to keep her alive.
Fifty years later, heart and vascular medicine has come a long way. Today, we still use heart-lung machines to keep people alive during open heart surgery, but the technology is very advanced. Physicians now perform cardiovascular procedures using minimally invasive techniques and robotics surgery.
This month, ProMedica launches ProMedica Heart and Vascular Institutes, a collaboration of physicians and medical experts across the system. The institutes feature an impressive network of the region’s leading cardiac surgeons, vascular surgeons and cardiologists, all working with the most advanced technologies available, offering the community access to more services, specialists and research than any single hospital in our region.
To learn more about ProMedica Heart and Vascular Institutes, call 1-877-303-5558 or visit online at www.promedica.org/PHVI.
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