Key points from today’s guests:

Nancy Nichols, heart patient

• Nancy is a 62-year-old who never smoked or had lung problems, but spent the past three years on oxygen for 24 hours a day. Instead of getting better, her health continued to deteriorate and no one knew why.
• She was referred to The University of Kansas Health System where they discovered she had a hole in her heart.
• Dr. Hajj repaired it and she said she felt like a new person.
• She credits him with saving her life. She was afraid she’d end up in a wheelchair in a nursing home, and now she feels great and is completely normal.
• She now serves as a minister to female inmates at the county jail.

Dr. Georges Hajj, interventional cardiologist, The University of Kansas Health System

• We used a test that goes into the patient’s throat to take quality pictures of the heart chambers and the membranes between those chambers.
• Through this process, we discovered Nancy had a hole in her heart.
• It’s called an atrial septal defect (ASD) and she was born with it.
• The procedures to correct this are pretty safe and the major risks are very rare. The technology today is amazing.
• I have the most rewarding job because of patients like Nancy. There’s nothing more rewarding than seeing how she is off of oxygen and living her life normally.

Friday, July 12 at 8 a.m. is the next Morning Medical Update. You don't need weights, bands, or a stationary bike. Your own body has everything you need for an effective workout. We’ll demonstrate the body-weight exercises that you can do anytime, anywhere.

ATTENTION MEDIA: Please note access is with Microsoft Teams:

Join on your computer or mobile app

Click here to join the meeting

Meeting ID: 235 659 792 451
Passcode: 6CSfGE

Download Teams | Join on the web

Or call in (audio only)

+1 913-318-8863,566341546#   United States, Kansas City

TVU Grid link: UoK_Health_SDI

Restream links: Facebook.com/kuhospital

YouTube.com/kuhospital

Send advance questions to medicalnewsnetwork@kumc.edu.