Young and Alive Again
Jim Brunelle was 57 when he underwent a quadruple bypass surgery for blockages in his heart. Things went well for him until 10 years later when he began to notice right buttock, hip, and thigh pain every time he walked. At first hewould not feel this hip and leg pain after walking three blocks. Gradually the pain got more severe with less and less activity. Jim felt bad on road trips with his friends when they had to stop and wait for him every few minutes because of his leg pain.
Things worsened to the point where he had to get a handicap sticker for his car because very little walking would cause leg pain. To evaluate these debilitating symptoms, Jim underwent an MRI of the arteries of his legs, which revealed significant blockages.
On December 15, 2009, Dr. Daniel Dulas, an MHVI vascular disease specialist successfully opened up these blockages in Jim’s legs with angioplasty balloons and stents. This restored much needed blood flow and oxygen down to the leg muscles, and he was able to walk out of Mercy Hospital later the same day without any more pain.
Six months later, while on a motorcycling trip to Iowa, Jim was able to pass all his younger friends walking up to a lookout at the top of a hill.
Now at 69, Jim feels young and alive again.
Leave a Reply
Want to join the discussion?Feel free to contribute!