Vittorio Anastasio with his twin daughters at UCSF in August 2010. He was recovering from a rare Brugada Storm which resulted in repeated Sudden Cardiac Arrest episodes and ICD shocks.
Welcome to my new Brugada Syndrome blog. This blog is a labor of love and something that I created to help others. This is an active resource for those who have Brugada or for someone who has a person in their life that has been diagnosed with Brugada. You can share this site by telling people to go to VittorioAnastasio.com/Brugada or the shortcut I created SFvito.com/brugada or more simply sfvito.com and then click on Brugada.
On February 15, 2010, I experienced an unexpected Sudden Cardiac Death episode. Months later it was discovered that I had Brugada. You can read about my experience in my Bio on this website, and I have listed my experience at the bottom of this blog post. From my experience, I found that there isn’t a lot out there about the condition, and there were a few discussion boards, but they have gone dormant. I intend to blog about my personal experience regularly and also share the news that I discover. You can subscribe to my blog so you can be notified via emails about new posts and you can reach out to me as I am willing to answer questions for people and parents who have been diagnosed or have a child diagnosed with Brugada. You should refer to your doctor for all medical questions, but I can discuss my personal experience living with the disease and dealing with Internal Cardiac Device (ICD) shocks.
Brugada History Bio –
In February 2010 Vittorio Anastasio suffered a sudden cardiac death episode (aborted). During the event, he experienced ventricular fibrillation which often causes the heart to immediately stop pumping blood leaving about five minutes in which to be resuscitated. Vittorio had no past history of medical issues and was fortunate to receive an almost immediate response from the San Francisco Fire Department paramedics who happened to be near his home where the incident had occurred. He was rushed to the University California San Francisco Medical Center and was induced into a coma, and the doctors searched for evidence in determining what had caused his cardiac arrest. As an immediate treatment, he had an Internal Cardiac Device (ICD) surgically implanted to act as a pacemaker and defibrillator should any future incidents of cardiac arrest were to occur. Due to his excessive time without oxygen, he suffered slight brain damage and severe short-term memory loss. In the following, May 2010 his defibrillator fired for the first time after he experiences an yet another unexpected ventricular fibrillation episode. In June UCSF’s genetic testing program and Dr. Melvin Scheinman collaborated and diagnosed Vittorio with a rare arrhythmia called Brugada. Brugada usually kills healthy adults ages 30-50 when they are at rest. For some time it was considered a mysterious adult version of SIDS. Brugada is a genetic disease that can be passed down through each generation, and other people in Vittorio’s family have discovered that they have the Brugada gene as well. In August 2010, Vittorio Anastasio returned to work, and during a faculty meeting he went into cardiac arrest and began to suffer from a rare Brugada storm. He was repeatedly going into vfib cardiac arrest, and in each instance, he would be defibrillated by his internal device. At UCSF Dr. Scheinman administered Isopropyl to pull Vittorio out of the cardiac storm, and over the course of the hospitalization, he tried various methods to gain control over Vittorio’s Brugada. Eventually, a combination of medication including Quinidine and Thyeolfplin were used to control further shocks, yet PTSD and memory issues continued during his initial recovery, and some problems continue to the present day. Vittorio’s quinidine doses have continued to increase, and cognitive and physiological challenges often result from the medication. Stress, fatigue, and any infection such as a common cold are all known to trigger Brugada. Working at a school, especially in the stressful role as an administrator, Vittorio was forced to return to the hospital on a few occasions.
In his continued battle with Brugada, Vittorio is now considering a new operation which hasn’t been performed yet in the United States. In short, the experimental procedure consists of conducting an internal ablation of a heart chamber which can possibly cure his disease. Vittorio has volunteered to speak with others who are living with Brugada or arrhythmias which required an ICD, and his blog has a special section dedicated to patients and families dealing with Brugada. It is his goal to share his story and experience to help others who also have the condition.
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