VIDEO: A retired Las Vegas fire captain shared his story after collapsing at home from a sudden cardiac event. His wife, a paramedic, saved his life. Now, theyโre hoping to raise awareness about how extreme heat can put added strain on the heart. Daniel Dennon doesnโt remember the day his heart gave out. โMy symptoms would have been the neck pain and the fatigue but as far as the day itself, I have a very blurry, tidbits of thoughts for that day,โ he said. Hours after playing hockey, Dennson collapsed at home, his wife Melanie, a paramedic, ran upstairs and found him barely breathing.
โI realized he didnโt have a pulse, just muscle memory from being a paramedic for. Over 20 years, I just jumped into action and just started CPR,โ Melanie said. Daniel was placed in a coma for nearly two weeks, doctors used a device called Impella, a newer heart pump that temporarily took over his heartโs workload. โThey were preparing us to possibly have to go to California for a transplant and because the Impella did such a good job at letting his heart rest and recover, heโs sitting here,โ Melanie said.
Now, the Dennons are sharing their story to encourage others to be proactive about their health, especially as extreme heat takes a toll on the heart. So far this year, 87 people in Clark County have died where heat was a factor and many of those cases involved heart-related issues. โWhatโs going on right now in Vegas with the heat, all of that takes its toll on first responders. So whether itโs police, fire, ambulance, anybody working outside, excessive heat does contribute if you have any underlying medical conditions,โ Melanie said.
