BookJ. Anthony Gomes.
Summary: This book provides an overview of the history, manifestations, and treatment of heart disease and heart rhythm disorders. In addition, it covers the effects on the lives of patients, coping mechanisms, and relationships with doctors, family, religion, and death. The book uniquely intersects the fields of medicine, literature, science, and art. Chapters begin by familiarizing the reader with the historical aspects of manifestations and treatment discussing both scientific and psychological aspects of the disease. Chapters also discuss the evolution of several treatment modalities. Every chapter of the book contains interesting and evocative patient stories and their treatment. Rhythms of Broken Hearts will be of interest to a wide spectrum of health care practitioners as well as to patients and related family members with interest in understanding their symptoms and disease entity.
Contents:
Intro
Praise for Rhythms of Broken Hearts
Books by J. Anthony Gomes, MD
Author's Note
Preface
Acknowledgments
Contents
Part I: The Mythology of the Human Heart
Chapter 1: Romanticizing the Heart
Ancient Egyptian View of the Heart
Ancient Indian View of the Heart
Ancient Greek View of the Heart
Ancient Islamic View of the Heart
The Renaissance Heart
William Harvey's View of the Heart
The Heart as Metaphor
Chapter 2: The Mysteries of the Age-Old Pulse
The Rosetta Stone of Ancient Egyptian Medicine Classifying the Pulse: Ancient Asian Medicine
Dissections and Clepsydras: The Ancient Greeks and Romans
Avicenna and Maimonides
The Pulsilogium and the Stopwatch
Current Understanding of the Pulse
Conclusions
Part II: The Renaissance Period in Heart Rhythm Disorders
Chapter 3: Demystifying the Heart
The Cartography of the Heart
The Search for the Command Center
The Org Chart of Control
Inside the Command Fibers
Chapter 4: Understanding Heart Rhythm Disorders: The Birth of the ECG and Clinical Cardiac Electrophysiology
The Code of the Electrocardiogram (ECG) Starting and Stopping Heartbeats
Tapping the Signals From Within the Heart
Enter Dr. Benjamin Scherlag, Ph.D.
The USPHS Hospital and Its Electrophysiology Laboratory
Dr. Anthony N. Damato: The Grandfather of Clinical Electrophysiology
Part III: Galloping Away in the Atrium
Chapter 5: Living with a Galloping Heart
George Ralph Mines and the Circles of PSVT
Maria's PSVT
Identifying Maria's Syndrome
What Causes WPW Syndrome?
Maria's Life-Threatening Complication
The Commonest Supraventricular Tachycardia
The Case of Antoinette Chapter 6: Radical Ideas: The Road to Conquering Supraventricular Tachycardia
The Road to Ending PSVT
The Attempt to Save Diane
Catheters and Radio Waves
Diane and Her Secret Companion
Antoinette's Curative Ablation of AVNRT
The Management of AVNRT
Chapter 7: Atrial Fibrillation: The Heart's Tap Dance
Triggers and Genes
The Cost of Atrial Fibrillation
The Insidious Upshots of Atrial Fibrillation
Evolution of Clot Prevention in AF Treatment
The Story of Warfarin
The New Anticoagulants
Preventing Strokes in Patients with AF New Devices for Stroke Prevention
Evolution of Rhythm and Rate Control in AF
Cardioversion
The Story of Maze
Medical Societies and Their Guidelines
Ablation: Fire and Ice
Treating Marjorie
Chapter 8: The Sawtooth Rhythm: Atrial Flutter
The Story of the Purple Foxglove (Digitalis)
The Road to Definitive Treatment
Part IV: Abnormal Rhythms Arising from the Ventricles
Chapter 9: The Elusive Ventricular Extra-Beat
The Origins of VPCs
Martha: Anxiety Versus VPCs
The Rock and the Mountain
VPC-Induced Cardiomyopathy