Racing shoes and racing heart - changing course toward recovery
Mike Newhouse reached his goal of running 100 consecutive days in a row after a heart ablation procedure. (Photo by Mercy Medical Center) / Sponsored by Mercy Heart Center
The metaphor “my heart skips a beat” usually refers to shock, but for atrial fibrillation (AFib) patients, it’s a literal occurrence.
AFib is a type of heart arrhythmia that affects more than three million people in the U.S; it’s a problem with the rate or rhythm of the heartbeat that causes the heart to beat quickly or irregularly.
As an avid runner and relay racer, Michael (Mike) Newhouse knew something was wrong when he started feeling his heart out of rhythm in 2014. After visiting the Mercy Cardiology Clinic, Mike left wearing a Holter monitor, so cardiologists could monitor his heart beats over a span of 24 to 48 hours. The monitor records everything the heart does during that time, and when Mike felt his symptoms, he wou