WSVN — For those who have suffered a heart attack, many live in fear of a repeat. Now one cardiologist says he’s a believer that a controversial treatment might be the answer to preventing cardiac problems. 7’s Danielle Knox shows us this potential heart help.
Carlos Perez had a heart attack last year while he was outside exercising.
Carlos Perez: “I thought I was Superman, believe me, for my age I used to run and walk.”
Fear of another attack still haunts him.
Carlos Perez: “The amount of fear that you develop any time you have something, you say, ‘My goodness, I am going to have another heart attack?”
His cardiologist, Dr. Gervasio Lamas, suggested testing Carlos for heavy metals.
Carlos Perez: “I had very high elevated levels of lead.”
The Chief of Cardiology at Mt. Sinai Medical Center is concerned about the effects of heavy metals on our arteries.
Dr. Gervasio Lamas: “Arsenic, mercury, lead, cadmium; those are the big four. We are now just beginning to getting really reliable scientific data, saying that ‘Yes, they are toxic to arteries’, they can cause heart attacks.”
Dr. Lamas says our bodies are exposed to environmental heavy metals every day, from our drinking water to our food.
The doctor just wrapped up a ten-year federally-funded study to see if a controversial, alternative treatment called “Chelation Therapy” could help patients with a history of heart problems.
Chelation involves dozens of IV infusions to flush out excess metals from the body.
Dr. Gervasio Lamas: “It’s a chemical that grabs that impure metal ion and takes it out of the body.”
Like most physicians, Dr. Lamas says he was a skeptic of chelation before the study but the results made him a believer.
Dr. Gervasio Lamas: “The patients who received the active infusions, in diabetics, had 41 percent fewer coronary events, and 43 percent fewer deaths. Now that’s striking, it’s really groundbreaking.”
Mt. Sinai is now the first hospital in the country to offer chelation therapy for heart patients. Carlos is undergoing the therapy and he believes it’s working.
Carlos Perez: “I feel much better. I also know that my body is being rejuvenated.”
Chelation therapy is considered an alternative treatment and is not covered by insurance. Dr. Lamas is now writing a grant proposal for another study to hopefully get more evidence that chelation helps heart patients.
For More Information:
Mount Sinai Medical Center, Miami Beach
4300 Alton Road
Miami Beach FL 33140
Chelation Therapy
Dr. Gervasio Lamas
305-674-2162