Three Stories

More information from Dr. Esselstyn

The Nutritional Reversal of Cardiovascular Disease “ Fact or Fiction? Three Case Reports Exp Clin Cardiol, Volume 20, Issue 7, 2014 - Page 1904

Case No. 1 – R. M. of New Foundland, Canada is a 74 year old male who had a heart attack at age 42 in 1982 and a mild stroke in 1985. Imaging at that time confirmed a 100% occlusion of the right carotid artery and a 27% blockage of the left carotid artery as well as further coronary artery disease progression necessitating bypass surgery which was performed not withstanding a 100% occluded right carotid artery. Despite optimal medical therapy and modest nutritional changes of decreasing sugar, fat, and eating less meat, the patient’s left carotid artery blockage had progressed by 2008 to 80-90% occlusion by ultra sound. By 2011 he was having daily angina and his physician indicated there was nothing further they could do for him. He felt his time was short. During this time, his daughter had found and read Dr. Esselstyn’s book Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease. She herself had experienced a heart attack at age 37, so they both became fully committed to whole foods, plant-based nutrition. Within one month, his angina completely disappeared and his erectile dysfunction resolved. After 4 months, he had lost 41 pounds to a body weight of 136 pounds which was the same weight at his wedding 53 years earlier. In September of 2013, a repeat duplex ultrasound confirmed left carotid artery disease reversal from 80-90% in 2008 to 50-69%. He states he no longer tires and in retirement he is physically active all day. He states “I am so busy living now, I no longer think about dying”.

Case No. 2 –A.S., a 32 years old engineer, was diagnosed with Type II diabetes mellitus and began treatment with oral medication (metformin 1,000 mg twice per day with a hemoglobin A1c of 6.5). By age 43 he started experiencing chest pain. Angiography at a local hospital confirmed coronary artery disease and he required a percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with stent placement in May of 2003. He returned to the local hospital in August of 2005 with recurrent chest pain and he received another stent. In June of 2007, recurrent symptoms warranted two additional stents. In September of 2007, he was seen at the Cleveland Clinic with recurrent chest pain. He required two angioplasties to treat stent re-stenosis. These recurrences were despite the standard lifestyle modifications, cardiac rehabilitation and usual cardiac medications (including the addition of glimepiride), achieving an LDL cholesterol of 60 mg/dl. By July of 2008, at age 47, he was having unstable angina necessitating a double coronary artery bypass graft surgery at the Cleveland Clinic. In November of 2009 he had recurrent chest pain for which he had stenting of his stenotic bypass graft and approximately one month later in December of 2009, at the same institution, his symptoms required two more stents for stent restenosis. At this time, physicians informed him and his wife that there was little else that could be done for him in view of his aggressive and progressive disease. He therefore, started on a regimen of multiple dietary supplements as recommended by a holistic medicine practitioner.

Nevertheless, on June 12, 2010 his three month experiment with holistic medicine failed and he underwent two more angioplasties for unstable angina. On June 18, 2010, becoming interested more in nutrition, he attended our 5.5 hour intensive counseling seminar at the Cleveland Clinic Wellness Institute. He has since been fully adherent to whole foods, plant-based nutrition beyond four years. He has had no further chest pain. Four months following initiating whole foods, plant-based nutrition he was declared no longer diabetic (with a hemoglobin A1c of 5.1 he was no longer taking any diabetic medications) and erectile dysfunction resolved. He maintains a normal, full work schedule and is empowered with the realization that his nutrition has vanquished his illness.

Case No. 3 – J. M. is a 62 years old male who was initially seen at the Cleveland Clinic on September 4, of 2003 at age 52. At that time he weighed 192 pounds and had hyperlipidemia and hypertension, both controlled by medications. He was given the standard diet prescription, and was started on niacin. On a return visit he had lost 25 pounds. He returned to an affiliate hospital of the Cleveland Clinic on March 15, 2006 having had a cerebral vascular accident for which he underwent a right carotid endarterectomy on March 19, 2006. At the time of that procedure he sustained a right retinal infarct. A right carotid duplex on May of 2006, two months after the procedure, confirmed the right carotid artery was now occluded. On August 27, 2007 a repeat duplex of the remaining patent left carotid artery confirmed increasing stenosis. Also, this time he was diagnosed with leg claudication. Further evaluation on February 28, 2008 confirmed progression of carotid stenosis from 20-39% in 2006 to 60-79% in 2008.

By March 14, 2010 his claudication progressed to the point of necessitating an intervention. He required an

endarterectomy of his left carotid artery on June 4, 2010 before his left leg bypass surgery. The left leg operation consisted of a vein graft from the left superficial femoral to the left posterior tibial artery and was performed on September 20, 2010. Within 48 hours the graft failed. Thombectomy of the failed graft was performed on September 23, 2010. A further evaluation of the leg graft on February 22, 2011 confirmed that it has thrombosed. At this time, exercise was recommended along with usual cardiovascular medications. In March of 2011, he attended a 5.5 hour intensive counseling seminar on whole foods, plant-based nutrition to halt and reverse cardiovascular disease at the Cleveland Clinic Wellness Institute. Within four months his claudication was markedly improved, his blood pressure was normal and he had now lost an additional 15 pounds. Two years following his transition to plant-based nutrition, he is able to walk without discomfort or pain beyond 45 minutes. He has maintained his weight loss and his blood pressure and cholesterol remain normal with minimal medications. Though he is presently retired, he derives satisfaction as a motivational speaker at the Cleveland Clinic Wellness Institute program for the arrest and reversal of cardiovascular disease.