From Marathon to Rehab and Back: How St. Elizabeth's Renowned Heart and Vascular Institute Helped Runner Beat the Odds

EDGEWOOD, Ky., Jan. 14, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- David Szeremet loves to run. A passionate runner from Ft. Thomas, Ky., David routinely logs up to 50 miles a week. He has completed more than 70 full marathons, more than 100 half marathons, and serves as pacer to help other runners achieve time goals for races throughout the U.S.

His running has taken him to such prestigious marathons as New York City four times, Big Sur in California four times, Columbus three times, Dallas four times, Grandma's Marathon in Duluth, Minn., four times, and countless Disney events. He has paced other runners into a 25-mph headwind at Big Sur, record rains in Los Angeles, a record cold day at Disney, and many hot and humid days in between.

David completed his first 10K at the age of 10 in 1978. Since then, he has logged nearly 100,000 miles and won an age division award in six decades.

"I started running in 1977 during the running boom," says David. "While most kids my age had posters of Magic Johnson and Walter Payton hanging on their walls, I counted distance runners Frank Shorter and Bill Rodgers among my heroes."

Suddenly one day in December 2023, running became a struggle. David, then 56, experienced breathing difficulties and eventually chest pains during and after runs. He became fatigued.

Always taught to "just rub dirt on it and keep running," David found he could not power through this new challenge.

"Back in December 2023, I noticed I was breathing heavier during my runs and my workouts were not what they used to be," says David. "Within a few weeks my symptoms were getting worse. I was fatigued and my chest felt tight, even when I was not running."

In early January 2024, David developed a high fever. Thinking he could just sleep it off like many conditioned athletes, his condition quickly deteriorated. His fever spiked to 103 and he did not have the strength to even get out of bed. That's when his wife Cheehee drove David to St. Elizabeth Healthcare's nearby emergency department, becoming the first person to help save his life.

"I had a major infection in my bloodstream, which affected my spleen and kidneys," says David. "My white blood cell count was really high, and I had a stroke, a minor heart attack, atrial fibrillation, and went into septic shock. By the end of the first day in the hospital, the care team discovered I had endocarditis, a heart condition that was causing a fungus to grow on my aortic valve."

This life-threatening diagnosis meant that David would need heart surgery to replace his damaged valve. That's when the care team at the St. Elizabeth Florence Wormald Heart & Vascular Institute stepped in. Led by Dr. Mario Castillo-Sang, one of only a handful of surgeons in the U.S., who perform microinvasive surgeries which utilize a smaller incision to provide patients with a quicker recovery, the team took immediate action. In January 2024, Dr. Castillo-Sang performed surgery to replace David's diseased valve with a bovine (cow) heart valve.

"David had the worst valve I've seen in my 14 years as a cardiothoracic surgeon," says Dr. Castillo-Sang. "We chose the bovine heart valve as the best option for someone as active as David. In David's case after having experienced small embolic strokes from the infection, it was a better idea not to require lifelong blood thinning that a mechanical valve would require. The cow tissue valve does not require long-term blood thinning medications. Given David's desire to return to an active lifestyle, the bovine valve offered him the best chance for recovery and a return to normalcy."

Following surgery, David still had a long road ahead to a full recovery. Soon after his return home, he entered a three-day-a-week cardiac rehab program for exercise, education sessions, and one-on-one health counseling.  Progress was incremental.

"The care team assured me I would be able to run again, but I was weak and had lost 45 pounds, including a lot of muscle mass. Just getting from the bed to the bathroom left me winded," says David. "I was worried that the heart surgery had permanently damaged me, and I would never get back to running again."

At one week, David struggled to walk a quarter mile. After two months of cardiac rehab, he could jog 20 miles a week. By September, almost nine months post-surgery, he reached a new milestone—40 miles a week of steady-pace running.

And on Oct. 20, 2024—just nine months after surgery—he reached his ultimate goal. David completed the Columbus, Ohio, half marathon and placed 8^th in his age division!

Dr. Castillo-Sang notes that acute bacterial endocarditis in otherwise healthy people is relatively rare. He sees just over one case per month—and most are less severe than David's.

Looking back on his experience, David has this advice for others.

"I almost paid the ultimate price by stubbornly trying to sleep off a deadly infection. I thought I could rub dirt on it and immediately get back in the game," says David. "Do not make the same mistake. Runners are among the most finely tuned athletes in the world. But we aren't invincible. Seek treatment whenever something seems off or when you do not feel 100% you."

"I'm so grateful for the team at St. Elizabeth Healthcare," he adds. "They not only saved my life, but they also helped give me my active life back."

For more information, go to https://www.stelizabeth.com/care/medical-services-2/heart-vascular/

SOURCE St. Elizabeth Healthcare