Tampa Bay Times du lieu suivant : St. Petersburg, Florida • H2

2 hu rs da A ugus 30 20 12 ampa ay imes HER ta mpab ay om pinion Th at partic ular name on the patient schedule for that afternoon lifted my spirits. I was looking for ward to seeing her I walked into the room and greeted her with a gentle hand- shak e. She got up and greeted me with an af fectionate hug As she as ge tt in onto the exam table, she began chanting more years, give me four more years. It reminded me of election season. What are you running I asked.

She didn hold any of ice and she wasn a candidate at leas not for political of ice. I opened her chart and noticed her age, 96. Suddenly I ot it She wanted to live to be 100. She was a candidate for centenarian. I am sure she will be successful.

I am sure she will live to 100 and beyond. She is in good shape: Active, sharp and always happy She is ver compliant and never complains. I et her for the irst tim about 26 years ago. It was 4 a.m. in the emergency room.

She had just died. Yo read that right. I came to the emergency room to see a patient ha ving a heart at tack. I sa the E.R. team resuscitating a patient who went into cardiac arrest in the ambulance the way to the hospital.

I went to see my patient in the next room, relieved to know that he was doing ine. But, I overheard the E.R. physician sa i of f. I peeked in and asked whether I could give a hand. were able to revive her She became one of my hear patients and now has ambitions to hit the centur mark.

She ha done well for the past 26 years, with appropriate treatment. Sudden cardiac death is responsible for approximately 300,000 fatalities in the nited States annually and an estimated 7 million worldwide. Mo st result from an unexpected hear at tack. Lack of blood flow to part of the heart muscle causes electrical irritability and causes the heart to ibrillate or quiver It can also happen in people with a scar from a previous heart at tack or in people with heart failure from a weak heart. If not restored to even rhythm with an elec tric shock, within a few minutes, the heart stops (cardiac arrest) and the patient dies.

With each passing minute after the onset, the likelihood of sur vival is reduced by 7 to 10 percent. Ev en if the heartbeat is restored after seven minutes, without chest compressions (CPR) to maintain blood flow to the brain during tha time, the patient can become brain dead. According to the American He art A ssociation, half of the men and nearly wo-thirds of the women who die suddenly of cor- onar heart disease ha ve no previous symptoms. Pr evention of sudden cardiac death involves prevention of heart disease in the irst place by controlling well-known risks. Early discover and adequate treatment of heart disease with medications and inter ventions (stents or bypass surger y) play a pivotal role.

If sudden cardiac death occ urs outside a hospital, prompt bystander CPR using chest compressions, urgent electric shock from an automatic xternal defibrillator and av ailability of an ambulance to transport the patient to the hospital improves chances or sur vival dramatically Ev er man, woman and child should learn to CPR. Mo st sudden cardiac deaths occ ur at home. ver public or privat place where people routinely gather should ha ve a function- i ng defibrillators and trained personnel. All police vehicles and ire trucks should ha ve them also. After 26 years, my a tient eeps praising me all these years for sa ving her life.

I xplain each time that it was pure destiny tha we met at the right time, at the right place, even though both of us reached udson from the opposite sides of the globe. She owes her gratitude to her maker not to e. So, is there life after death? I ha ve one patient who says, yes, most definitely She has a ood one, right here on Earth. ea ven can wait. She till on her campaign trail for at leas four more years.

Dr Rao usunuru, a cardiologist, has treated asco and ernando patients for more than 30 year s. He eceived the American eart Association national physician of the year award in 2005 Gues column Rao usun uru Cardiac arrest need not be end Musunuru COLONDRES ontinued fr om 1 and rban Development, acc u- mula ted other evidence, such as inancial records, that indicated Castillo lived there for least two years. hen Pila learned that Castillo was planning to testify on behalf Anytime your tar witness becomes a witness for the other side, kind of a problem, Pila said. A few days before the trial date, Pila found out that Colondres had been approved for continued federal housing assistance, despite her pending charges. The fact could ha ve been used to her advantage in court, Pila said.

Th at just flabbergasted me, he said. was the final nail in the cof in. It was unclear hy Colondres was approved for more assistance, given her legal case. To mmy Brooks, exec utive director for the city authority did not return a call. A spokeswoman for HUD did not respond to an email quer by the ampa Bay Times on ednesda y.

Colondres has teadfastly aintained her innocence. In a previous inter view with the Times she said Castillo was only visiting her and, more recentl their young son. hen the couple had a falling out, Colondres said, Castillo tried to retaliate agains her by going to police with acc u- sations that she was defrauding the housing authorit Her at torne immy Brown, has said Castillo was angr and told investigators what the wanted to hear He recanted after he realized the consequences that his stor could ha ve for the mother of his child, Brown said. Castillo has declined to comment and did not return a message left ednesday at the elections of ice. ila a nd his of fice ade th right decision, Brown said ednesda y.

would not ha ve been, especially at this stage, a good use of taxpayer money for going after someone for misusing taxpayer mone Brown said. Colondres had rejected a plea deal that would ha ve required her to pay restitution and ser ve probation, but av oid jail time. If convicted, she faced a maximum of five years in prison and a $5,000 ine. Ha Colondres been convicted, Pila and Brown said, a judge likely would ha ve sentenced her probation and ordered her to pa restitution because she does not ha ve a lengthy criminal record. She was convicted in arch on a misdemeanor retail theft charge, county records show he Brooksville City Council appointed Colondres to the housing board in Ma 2011 and removed her from the voluntee position after her arrest.

She cu rrently is enrolled in technical school and is not with Castillo, Brown said. ony arrero can be eached at or (352) 848- 1431 He rn an do im es tampabay or more news Charges dropped for woman accused of cheating on rent These business and government offices will be closed Monday i observance of Labor Day: Hernando County libraries, all branches Hernando County government offices THE Bus and rans-Hernando public transportation Supervisor of elections offices U.S. ostal Service offices Local banks Hernando County Office Hernando County public schools Hernando County Recreation Department Greater Hernando County Chamber of Commerce Florida Department of Children and Families asco-Hernando Community College, all campuses Withlacoochee River Electric Cooperative Southwest Florida ater Management District Brooksville olice Department offices Brooksville City Hall City of Brooksville Sanitation Division: Monday pickups will be on uesday; uesday pickups will be on ednesday. abor Da closings.