Dear clients, colleagues and friends:

On Tuesday August 11, 2009 I suffered a heart attack. Fortunately, at the time of the attack, I was at the IBC clinic. I was hospitalized and my wonderful friends Dr. Rodriguez and staff went out of their way to help me.

Although untimely, this episode wasn’t a complete surprise.  All the male members of my family have a genetic disposition to heart disease. My father died from Myocardial Infarction (MI) at the age of 57. His father died of MI at the age of 56. They both lived a very healthy lifestyle. They watched their diet, didn’t drink, didn’t smoke and exercised.  

I have been conscious of these facts for years. Now 52, I keep ideal weight. I exercise regularly and watch my diet.  I’m tested regularly for high cholesterol and triglycerides and I take “Crestor” to keep them in the normal range. Despite all this, in January of 2008, I suffered my first attack. I was rushed to “West Hills Hospital” in California and my wonderful colleague and a very prominent heart surgeon, “Dr. Jamali”, determined that I had two “partial blockages”. Entering through my femoral artery he placed two “stents” at the areas that were blocked.

Following my procedure in January of 2008, I recuperated quickly and until last Tuesday, aside from occasional chest discomforts, everything seemed to be fine.  However, with this recent attack, my doctors are considering “bypass” surgery instead of stent. I’m still being evaluated and a decision is expected soon. Interestingly enough, I have asked my doctors to entertain the possibility of performing “Apheresis”. For my perspective, an Apheresis procedure is essential. One question is whether to perform the Apheresis before or after the bypass. The other question, and the most interesting, is whether we can be allowed to perform the Apheresis here at a California hospital.

I’ll keep you posted.

Casey Nabavi