Doctor Saved From South Pole Had Suffered a Heart Attack
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ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — A physician rescued from the South Pole underwent a procedure to unclog his arteries Thursday after doctors discovered he had suffered a heart attack in December.
Dr. Ronald S. Shemenski, 59, had been scheduled to undergo gallbladder surgery Thursday, but the operation was postponed because of his heart problem, doctors said.
The gallbladder condition was diagnosed while he was at the South Pole, and he was evacuated April 26.
Doctors at Swedish Medical Center performed an angioplasty Thursday to clear blockage in two heart arteries and inserted two metal coils, or stents, designed to keep the vessels open, cardiologist Harvey Schuchman said.
Tests performed Wednesday and Thursday revealed blockage and scarring on his heart that was evidence of the heart attack, Schuchman said.
Doctors said Shemenski was lucky to have the gallbladder condition because the heart problem may not have been diagnosed otherwise.
Doctors believe Shemenski suffered the heart attack when he complained of flu-like symptoms and chest pains in December.
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