In April 2005, Mitchell Doub from Winston Salem, North Carolina experienced severe chest pain while celebrating a football victory. This led to the discovery of a major blockage in one of his coronary arteries. Doub underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), a procedure that opened the artery using a balloon and stent, allowing him to quickly return to normal activities.
Fast forward nearly two decades to January 2024, when Doub experienced similar symptoms while exercising. “I kept trying to run, and each time I would feel that sternal pain, but it went away if I slowed down to a walk. And I thought, ‘Well, this is not good,’” Doub recounted. Another PCI revealed a significant blockage, and during the procedure, Doub’s artery ruptured, necessitating open-heart surgery.
However, within six weeks after surgery, Doub’s bypass vessel collapsed, leaving him in a precarious situation with a chronic total occlusion (CTO) and without immediate treatment options. Local physicians indicated that further PCI would be too risky, suggesting he may rely on developing natural blood vessel growth to sustain his heart.
Doub’s prospects changed when his daughter referred him to Duke Health. There, Dr. Othman, a “complex high-risk indicated procedure (CHIP) operator,” addressed Doub’s complications. Using intravascular lithotripsy, a technology adapted from kidney stone treatment, Dr. Othman resolved the calcification blockage in less than 90 minutes. “Right after he did the procedure, I had no chest pain at all, immediately,” said Doub. He quickly resumed his regular activities following the procedure.
Dr. Othman advises individuals with CTO to seek a second opinion from a CHIP operator if they have been told it is untreatable. “Hopefully more people find out that we’re able to help these patients at Duke,” he commented.
