Northeast Ohio Man Survives Extreme Cardiac Event, Receives 30+ Defibrillations

A Northeast Ohio man who experienced what likely would have been a deadly heart attack is home with his family thanks to the steadfast medical professionals determined to save his life. “This is a pretty amazing story,” said Geoffrey T. Patty RN, Quality/Chest Pain Coordinator with the Harrington Heart & Vascular Institute at University Hospitals Geauga Medical Center in Chardon, Ohio. “This was a real save, a phenomenal effort from the EMS, the Emergency Department, and the UH Geauga Harrington Heart & Vascular Institute Cath Lab Team.”

On June 4, Hiram Fire/EMS responded as 63-year-old Franklin Briggs experienced severe chest pain. Paramedics performed an electrocardiogram at his home and identified his symptoms as a ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). In the ambulance, Briggs became unresponsive and went into ventricular fibrillation. Hiram Fire/EMS administered the first of what would turn out to be an extraordinary number of heart defibrillations. That shock reset Briggs’ heart to normal rhythm. However, when he arrived to the Emergency Department of UH Geauga Medical Center, he again went into ventricular fibrillation and this time it led to full cardiac arrest. For the next 45 minutes, medical personnel worked tirelessly to keep Briggs alive by administering drugs as well as continuous CPR with chest compressions and defibrillations over and over. Briggs received 26 shocks to his heart in the ED and five more in the cardiac catheterization laboratory inside the hospital, where he was taken in an effort to open the blockage that led to ongoing cardiac arrest. In the cath lab, the team continued CPR while Gregory Stefano, MD, Medical Director of the Harrington Heart & Vascular Institute at UH Geauga Medical Center, identified a 100 percent blocked artery and opened it with a stent. He also inserted an intra-aortic balloon pump. After these measures were taken, Briggs received a 34th and final defibrillation, and his heart regained normal electrical function.

“I’ve been doing this a long, long time and I cannot remember a person who was shocked 30 times and walked out,” said Patty. “Only a very small number of people who come to UH Geauga’s Cath Lab need shocked at all, let alone 30 or more times.”

“One in a million shot,” said Briggs about his chances of survival after this type of cardiac event. “Everybody was helpful. I’m so grateful to everyone for what they did.” Franklin Briggs is now recovering at home in Hiram, Ohio, spending time with his wife and family. He returns to UH Geauga Cardiac Rehabilitation three times a week. 

Geoffrey Patty, BSN, RN, RN-BC, AACC Quality/Chest Pain Coordinator, can be contacted at:

geoffrey.patty@uhhospitals.org