Ranier may only have 602 residents, but two of them have some of the most advanced cardiac technology implanted inside them. They also just happen to be mother and daughter.
Joyce Christenson is 99 years young. When she started having heart trouble last year, she went to Essentia Health St. Mary's-Heart & Vascular Center in Duluth. There, she met with Interventional Cardiologist Dr. Jason Schultz.
"Because of Joyce's age and medical condition, open-heart surgery was not an option, so that's when I decided that TAVR was the best choice," says Schultz.
TAVR, pronounced "tahv-er," stands for transcatheter aortic valve replacement. It's a revolutionary new valve that can add years of life to heart patients who wouldn't do well with open-heart surgery. St. Mary's is the only hospital in northern Minnesota that performs the procedure.
TAVR uses a valve resembling chicken wire with tissue from pigs' hearts. The valve is fed through arteries in the body via the groin, neck or under the breast or ribs. Once inside the heart, the valve expands to about an inch in size and begins working immediately-all while the heart is beating.
"I had my surgery on Monday, and I went home on Wednesday. I feel so much better in the six months that I've had it," says Joyce. When her daughter, Diane Parsons, 76, started to have serious heart troubles, Diane had only one heart center and one doctor in mind.
"I was in Texas at the time, and they told me they could fix my heart in Houston," says Diane. "I said 'No way.' I'm going back to Duluth. I'm going to Dr. Schultz."
"I called to find out how Joyce was doing," says Schultz, "And then I heard that her daughter, Diane, wanted to come see me."
On May 18, Diane had her TAVR operation. While she's still in the healing stages a week later, she already feels better.
"The thought of open-heart surgery caused panic in me, so to have an alternative that will help me breathe and function better was ideal. I really wasn't nervous at all because I knew how well my mom felt after she had it done," Diane says.
Schultz has performed more than 100 TAVR procedures - 35 at St. Mary's since he moved here last fall. "I came to Duluth to do TAVR," he told Joyce and Diane at a recent follow-up visit. "Well, good, I'm glad you did," Joyce exclaimed. "You must have moved here for me!"
While he has performed on husband and wife, a mother/daughter TAVR team is unique to the interventional cardiologist.
The feisty duo will help each other through their continuing cardiac rehabilitation. They also look forward to another major milestone, Joyce's 100th birthday party, where they both have plenty to celebrate.
To learn more about TAVR or other cardiac procedures, call the Heart & Vascular Center at (218) 786-3443 or go to http://www.essentiahealth.org/EssentiaHealthHeartVascularCenter/Find-a-Clinic/Essentia-Health-Heart-Vascular-Center-177.asp For an animation on how the valve is inserted and works, please click on this video: http://newheartvalve.com/hcp/tavr-overview#sthash.OX1IzhWc.dpbs