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ABOUT ABBOTT
Bob Quick biked cross-country to thank first responders for saving lives just like his.
Nearly four long minutes.
That's how long Bob Quick's heart stopped beating in 2004 on a day he calls the best of his life.
"That heart attack changed everything for the better," he said.
His heart stopped. He didn't.
In the years since that near-fatal episode, Quick has had stents implanted to support blood flow to his heart as well as an Abbott implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) in his chest to help manage his heart disease and maintain a normal heartbeat.
"With a heart condition, you can either get up and start living, or sit down and start dying," Quick said of his cardiovascular disease.
During Quick's heart attack, paramedics in his hometown of Roy, Utah, performed CPR to bring him back.
He'll never forget it. And he won't let them forget it, either, nor their colleagues across the country.
His appreciation and gratitude drove him last year to bike from Oregon to New York with stops in towns along the way to say thank you to firefighters, paramedics and police officers for their service while raising awareness for heart health.
That he's a still-living, still-breathing example of living your best life has not gone unnoticed, especially by people living with heart disease.
"I take every day, every breath, every touch, every smell to the fullest you can imagine," he said. "Every day I want to inspire someone."
This testimonial relates an account of an individual’s response to the treatment. This patient's account is genuine, typical and documented. However, it does not provide any indication, guide, warranty or guarantee as to the response other persons may have to the treatment. Responses to the treatment discussed can and do vary and are specific to the individual patient.
IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION
INDICATIONS:
The devices are intended to provide ventricular antitachycardia pacing and ventricular defibrillation for automated treatment of life-threatening ventricular arrhythmias. Dual-chamber pacing: AF SuppressionTM pacing is indicated for suppression of paroxysmal or persistent atrial fibrillation in patients with the above ICD indication and sinus node dysfunction.
CONTRAINDICATIONS:
Contraindications for pulse generator system use include ventricular tachyarrhythmias resulting from transient or correctable factors such as drug toxicity, electrolyte imbalance and acute myocardial infarction.
ADVERSE EVENTS:
Implantation of the pulse generator system, like that of any other device, involves risks, some possibly life-threatening. These include but are not limited to the following: acute hemorrhage/bleeding, air emboli, arrhythmia acceleration, cardiac or venous perforation, cardiogenic shock, cyst formation, erosion, exacerbation of heart failure, extrusion, fibrotic tissue growth, fluid accumulation, hematoma formation, histotoxic reactions, infection, keloid formation, myocardial irritability, nerve damage, pneumothorax, thromboemboli, venous occlusion. Other possible adverse effects include mortality due to: component failure, device-programmer communication failure, lead abrasion, lead dislodgment or poor lead placement, lead fracture, inability to defibrillate, inhibited therapy for a ventricular tachycardia, interruption of function due to electrical or magnetic interference, shunting of energy from defibrillation paddles, system failure due to ionizing radiation. Other possible adverse effects include mortality due to inappropriate delivery of therapy caused by: multiple counting of cardiac events including T waves, P waves, or supplemental pacemaker stimuli. Among the psychological effects of device implantation are imagined pulsing, dependency, fear of inappropriate pulsing and fear of losing pulse capability. Refer to the User's Manual for detailed indications, contraindications, warnings, precautions and potential adverse events.