Well - Fall 2010 - (Page 8)

Thanks to a mechanical device that replaced the function of his heart, Brian Ainsley now has a new zest for life—and energy to spare rian ainsley has every reason to be depressed. Three heart attacks and two surgeries can do that to a person. If you add up the time he has spent in the hospital, he could have easily cruised the entire country on his beloved Harley-Davidson motorcycle. So why is Ainsley, 51, smiling? Why is the father of six attacking life with the energy of a man two decades his junior? The answers rest on his one-of-a-kind attitude, a tremendous support system, innovative medical technology in the form of a ventricular assist device (VAD), and the world-class care he received from the UNC Center for Heart and Vascular Care. After his stent failed for the second time and he suffered his third heart attack in late 2008, Ainsley was hospitalized at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center. Five days later, he woke up at UNC Health Care in Chapel Hill, where he was transferred when his condition worsened. “I didn’t realize I was out that many days,” he says. “They told me I was the sickest person in the hospital.” And so began the real start of his medical adventure. UNC Health Care doctors determined he would be an excellent candidate for a VAD. Soon Testing His Optimism 8 Fall 2010 Well PhoTo: RAchel GARRison foR TAmARA lAckey PhoToGRAPhy Heart Fixing His Failing

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Well - Fall 2010

Well - Fall 2010
Contents
UNC Health Care News
Community
100 Years of Medical Advancement
Managing Diabetes for a Lifetime
Fixing His Failing Heart
Nutrition
Q&A
Calendar

Well - Fall 2010