Canton Repository, Sept. 18, 2007
BY DIANA ROSSETTI, REPOSITORY LIVING SECTION WRITER
PERRY TOWNSHIP -- Because she works with her hands, Regina Capobianco first attributed the pain to possible carpal tunnel syndrome, which occurs when the median nerve running from the forearm into the hand becomes constricted at the wrist. 
But the 39-year-old factory employee complained of discomfort in her arms and shoulders.
"It felt like my whole body needed cracked," Capobianco recalled.
Still, she worked a 12-hour shift that Friday in July.
The next day, however, her symptoms worsened.
"It was really weird, the pain in my neck and ears, really weird," Capobianco said. "It felt like I was breathing cold air, like in a freezer. When I went outside, I broke out in a major sweat. I came in and laid on the floor. I reached over and grabbed the phone and called my sister. She called my mom and they called 911."
LIFE-SAVING EQUIPMENT
Capobianco -- young, slim and active -- was having a heart attack.
Minutes later, the EMS (Emergency Medical Services) team arrived, their squad vehicle equipped with an EKG unit. (EKG is the abbreviation for electrocardiogram, a test measuring the electrical activity of the heartbeat.)
"That's what saved me. They put me in and hooked me up to the EKG. They had me lift my tongue up and put nitro under it and got me to the hospital. They were already waiting for me at the Aultman (Hospital) emergency room and they told me, 'We're going to work fast,'" she said. "I didn't even make it to the table and I went out."
Capobianco's heart had stopped and cardiologist John Paulowski, medical director of the Aultman Cardiac Catheterization lab, used a defibrillator to jump start it. It stopped 19 more times before she successfully underwent surgery to open an artery that was completely blocked.
Two months after the surgery, she is back to work. Her heart muscle suffered minimal damage, Paulowski said.
"Thank God for that (EKG) machine in the ambulance. I may have died," she said. "But they had the results when I first got to the hospital and the heart team was there for me."
FAMILY HISTORY
Her father died of heart failure. Her mother suffered a heart attack 12 years ago. Now, she said, her sister is scheduled for a stress test.
Calling 911 rather than waiting for someone to drive her to the hospital, Paulowski commented, made all the difference. Advance EKG information from the EMS team saved valuable time.
"We tell everyone there are never any stupid phone calls," Paulowski said of the public's hesitation to call 911. "It's better to be alive than to be embarrassed. We never look at patients that way. Minutes matter and you don't have time to get help by car like 75 percent of the U.S. populations does."
As for Capobianco, being given a second chance is a gift she cherishes.
"Don't put it off. Call somebody," Capobianco urged. "It can happen in the blink of an eye."
Reach Diana Rossetti at (330) 580-8322 or e-mail: diana.rossetti@cantonrep.com
PAY ATTENTION TO BODY SIGNALS
Symptoms of heart attack vary by gender, said Dr. John Paulowski, medical director of the Aultman cardiac catheterization lab.
Woman may experience:
- Fatigue
- Shortness of breath
- Back or jaw pain
- Nausea
Men may experience:
- Classic chest pain
- Shortness of breath
- Left arm discomfort
Paulowski said chest discomfort may feel like uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness or pain. He also said discomfort or pain in other areas of the upper body should be noted. Lightheadedness is another warning signal.
AULTMAN AND AHA
How to prevent a second heart attack? The Aultman staff follows the American Heart Association's "Get With the Guidelines" program.
The program teams doctors, nurses and residents using time-proven practices developed by the AHA that cut in half the likelihood of recurrence, length of hospitalization, heart failure and death.
The hospital was named in U.S. News and World Report for having met program requirements for coronary artery, heart failure and stroke modules.
