{"id":7941,"date":"2017-01-26T16:24:12","date_gmt":"2017-01-26T23:24:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/?p=7941"},"modified":"2026-04-02T15:46:45","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T21:46:45","slug":"eluding-open-heart-surgery","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\/","title":{"rendered":"Eluding open-heart surgery"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>
\"Lee
Lee Steele participated in UCHealth’s low-risk trial and was chosen for TAVR in August 2016. Photo by Kati Blocker, UCHealth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

For people with certain heart valve problems, years can pass before the problem needs to be addressed. But once the heart\u2019s ability to work is affected, the valve must be fixed, and that usually means open-heart surgery.<\/p>\n

That is, until recently.<\/p>\n

A trial at UCHealth is giving patients who would otherwise need open-heart surgery the chance to have their heart valves repaired with a less-invasive procedure.<\/p>\n

Lee Steele, an interior trim carpenter from Cheyenne, Wyoming, got that chance.<\/p>\n

Steele and his UCHealth cardiologist, Dr. Todd Whitsitt<\/a>, had been monitoring Steele\u2019s heart for more than four years. Each year, Steele would get an echocardiogram, a type of ultrasound of the heart, to monitor Steele\u2019s condition, called aortic stenosis, which prevents the heart\u2019s aortic valve from opening properly.<\/p>\n

As one ages, basic wear and tear can cause the flaps of a valve to thicken. As a result, the heart has to work harder to pump blood through the valve, and the body can suffer from a reduced supply of oxygen.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of times the issue is found because a doctor will identify a heart murmur,\u201d said Dr. Brad Oldemeyer<\/a>, a UCHealth interventional cardiologist. \u201cThen it\u2019s discovered there is a thickening of the aortic valve. Until it becomes severe and a person develops symptoms, we don\u2019t need to fix it.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s usually not until blood flow is significantly restricted that people experience symptoms such as breathlessness, chest pains or pressure, noticeable heartbeats, decline in physical ability or fainting.<\/p>\n

After close monitoring \u2014 and a failed stress test at UCHealth Heart Center in Loveland \u2014 doctors decided it was time for Steele, 79, to have his valve fixed.<\/p>\n

Open-heart surgery was the only option until the less-invasive TAVR, or transcatheter aortic valve replacement, procedure came along.<\/p>\n

During open-heart surgery, the damaged valve is removed and replaced with an artificial valve while the patient is under anesthesia. Typical recovery is eight to 12 weeks and requires months of cardiac rehabilitation to help the patient regain energy and overall health. What\u2019s more, a person with a mechanical valve will most likely take medication the rest of his or her life to help prevent blood clots.<\/p>\n

TAVR is a minimally invasive surgical procedure that repairs a damaged valve without removing it. A team of heart surgeons and interventional cardiologists works together to place a collapsible artificial valve into the heart. \u00a0When in position, it expands and pushes the old valve leaflets out of the way, and the tissue in the replacement valve takes over the job of regulating blood flow.<\/p>\n

The procedure was approved by the FDA in 2011 but only for patients who were too high risk for open-heart surgery. The FDA later approved the procedure for moderate-risk patients.<\/p>\n

\u201cBefore, we\u2019ve had to tell people that they were too healthy for TAVR,\u201d Oldemeyer said. \u201cBut the data is showing that it\u2019s equivalent, if not superior, to surgery with the outcomes we want, and therefore it\u2019s being offered to a broader range of patients.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Lee
Lee Steele, of Cheyenne, Wyoming, was back doing what he loves just days after his TAVR procedure at UCHealth. Photo by Kati Blocker, UCHealth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Patients like Steele \u2014 who are otherwise healthy and a low risk for surgery \u2014 still are not guaranteed the TAVR option. That\u2019s why Steele decided to participate in UCHealth\u2019s low-risk TAVR trial, which is being offered at UCHealth Heart Center at Medical Center of the Rockies in Loveland as well as at UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital in Aurora.<\/p>\n

Because TAVR is a less invasive surgical procedure, patients usually experience a quicker recovery. Oldemeyer said it\u2019s common for low-risk patients to go home the next day.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m an interior trim carpenter by trade,\u201d Steele said. \u201cGiven the work that I do and the needs of my family, I wouldn\u2019t have been able to handle the long recovery involved in open-heart surgery.\u201d<\/p>\n

Steele said he enrolled in the trial because it gave him a 50-50 chance of getting TAVR, a procedure he\u2019s learned from friends was the way to go.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe [Steele and his wife] have close friends here in Cheyenne and family in California that are very familiar with TAVR, and all of them said that it\u2019s the way to go,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s the new way of doing things.\u201d<\/p>\n

With reassurance from his friends and family \u2014 and previous experience with Medical Center of the Rockies for a spinal fusion \u2014 Steele said he wasn\u2019t too concerned about his procedure.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were so impressed with the quality of care before that it lessened the normal apprehensions we may have had about the surgery,\u201d he said. \u201cThe doctors and nurses were just extraordinary.\u201d<\/p>\n

Just a few days after his August 2016 heart surgery, Steele began to do minimal work in his small workshop while also attending cardiac rehab at Cheyenne Regional Medical Center. In the next month or so, he plans to reconnect with a custom cabinet manufacturing company to continue doing installations and interior trim carpentry.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel very good,\u201d he said. \u201cSince the surgery, I\u2019ve met a number of people in rehab that have had the different procedures, and those who have had TAVR don\u2019t seem to have any hesitation recommending it. Their quality of life afterwards is excellent. And I know the program for which I\u2019ve been exposed has been an A-plus program.<\/p>\n

\u201cA significant part of recovery is participation in cardiac rehab and a commitment to exercising regularly and following a heart healthy diet. These are all part of the recovery program. I am very fortunate to have had the opportunity for TAVR and to have added a significant number of years to my life.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For people with certain heart valve problems, years can pass before the problem needs to be addressed. But once the heart\u2019s ability to work is affected, the valve must be fixed, and that usually means open-heart surgery. That is, until recently. A trial at UCHealth is giving patients who would otherwise need open-heart surgery the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2164,"featured_media":7943,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[84,515,3512,82,128,4822],"class_list":["post-7941","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-innovative-care","tag-cardiology","tag-cardiovascular-services","tag-heart-and-vascular-care-cardiovascular","tag-heart-and-vascular-care-cardiology","tag-heart-health","tag-the-tavr-program"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nEluding open-heart surgery - UCHealth Today<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"For people with certain heart valve problems, years can pass before the problem needs to be addressed. But once the heart\u2019s ability to work is affected, the valve must be fixed, and that usually means open-heart surgery. That is, until recently. A trial at UCHealth is giving pa...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Eluding open-heart surgery\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"For people with certain heart valve problems, years can pass before the problem needs to be addressed. But once the heart\u2019s ability to work is affected, the valve must be fixed, and that usually means open-heart surgery. That is, until recently. A trial at UCHealth is giving patients who would otherwise need open-heart surgery the […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"UCHealth Today\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/uchealthorg\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-01-26T23:24:12+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-04-02T21:46:45+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2017\/01\/28140615\/Lee-steele_art-work_print-size-e1485472564754.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Kati Blocker, UCHealth\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@uchealth\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@uchealth\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Kati Blocker, UCHealth\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Kati Blocker, UCHealth\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/2974962d9c19ae1bbcec3250ab830fbc\"},\"headline\":\"Eluding open-heart surgery\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-01-26T23:24:12+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-02T21:46:45+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":992,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2017\\\/01\\\/28140615\\\/Lee-steele_art-work_print-size-e1485472564754.webp\",\"keywords\":[\"Cardiology\",\"Cardiovascular services\",\"Heart and vascular care\",\"Heart care\",\"Heart health\",\"The TAVR program\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Innovative care\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\\\/\",\"name\":\"Eluding open-heart surgery - UCHealth Today\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2017\\\/01\\\/28140615\\\/Lee-steele_art-work_print-size-e1485472564754.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-01-26T23:24:12+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-02T21:46:45+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2017\\\/01\\\/28140615\\\/Lee-steele_art-work_print-size-e1485472564754.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2017\\\/01\\\/28140615\\\/Lee-steele_art-work_print-size-e1485472564754.webp\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":776,\"caption\":\"Lee Steele, of Cheyenne, Wyoming, was back doing what he loves just days after his TAVR procedure at UCHealth. Photo by Kati Blocker, UCHealth.\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Eluding open-heart surgery\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/\",\"name\":\"UCHealth Today\",\"description\":\"UCHealth Today\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"UCHealth\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2020\\\/04\\\/24135149\\\/UCHealth-square-logo-1000x1000-1.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2020\\\/04\\\/24135149\\\/UCHealth-square-logo-1000x1000-1.jpg\",\"width\":1000,\"height\":1000,\"caption\":\"UCHealth\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/uchealthorg\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/uchealth\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/uchealth\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.linkedin.com\\\/school\\\/14839\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pinterest.com\\\/uchealthorg\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.youtube.com\\\/channel\\\/UC41SJI79yjZIe96OajzN22g\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/2974962d9c19ae1bbcec3250ab830fbc\",\"name\":\"Kati Blocker, UCHealth\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/62cfc49002cce7d835ff120702e1e8cd4b871b3468a4fed7137fbfa60674c6b3?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/62cfc49002cce7d835ff120702e1e8cd4b871b3468a4fed7137fbfa60674c6b3?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/62cfc49002cce7d835ff120702e1e8cd4b871b3468a4fed7137fbfa60674c6b3?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Kati Blocker, UCHealth\"},\"description\":\"Kati Blocker has always been driven to learn and explore the world around her. And every day, as a writer for UCHealth, Kati meets inspiring people, learns about life-saving technology, and gets to know the amazing people who are saving lives each day. Even better, she gets to share their stories with the world. As a journalism major at the University of Wyoming, Kati wrote for her college newspaper. She also studied abroad in Swansea, Wales, while simultaneously writing for a Colorado metaphysical newspaper. After college, Kati was a reporter for the Montrose Daily Press and the Telluride Watch, covering education and health care in rural Colorado, as well as city news and business. When she's not writing, Kati is creating her own stories with her husband Joel and their two children.\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/author\\\/katieblocker\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Eluding open-heart surgery - UCHealth Today","description":"For people with certain heart valve problems, years can pass before the problem needs to be addressed. But once the heart\u2019s ability to work is affected, the valve must be fixed, and that usually means open-heart surgery. That is, until recently. A trial at UCHealth is giving pa...","robots":{"index":"noindex","follow":"follow"},"og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Eluding open-heart surgery","og_description":"For people with certain heart valve problems, years can pass before the problem needs to be addressed. But once the heart\u2019s ability to work is affected, the valve must be fixed, and that usually means open-heart surgery. That is, until recently. A trial at UCHealth is giving patients who would otherwise need open-heart surgery the […]","og_url":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\/","og_site_name":"UCHealth Today","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/uchealthorg\/","article_published_time":"2017-01-26T23:24:12+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-04-02T21:46:45+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2017\/01\/28140615\/Lee-steele_art-work_print-size-e1485472564754.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Kati Blocker, UCHealth","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@uchealth","twitter_site":"@uchealth","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Kati Blocker, UCHealth","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\/"},"author":{"name":"Kati Blocker, UCHealth","@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/#\/schema\/person\/2974962d9c19ae1bbcec3250ab830fbc"},"headline":"Eluding open-heart surgery","datePublished":"2017-01-26T23:24:12+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-02T21:46:45+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\/"},"wordCount":992,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2017\/01\/28140615\/Lee-steele_art-work_print-size-e1485472564754.webp","keywords":["Cardiology","Cardiovascular services","Heart and vascular care","Heart care","Heart health","The TAVR program"],"articleSection":["Innovative care"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\/","url":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\/","name":"Eluding open-heart surgery - UCHealth Today","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2017\/01\/28140615\/Lee-steele_art-work_print-size-e1485472564754.webp","datePublished":"2017-01-26T23:24:12+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-02T21:46:45+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2017\/01\/28140615\/Lee-steele_art-work_print-size-e1485472564754.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2017\/01\/28140615\/Lee-steele_art-work_print-size-e1485472564754.webp","width":1200,"height":776,"caption":"Lee Steele, of Cheyenne, Wyoming, was back doing what he loves just days after his TAVR procedure at UCHealth. Photo by Kati Blocker, UCHealth."},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/eluding-open-heart-surgery\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Eluding open-heart surgery"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/","name":"UCHealth Today","description":"UCHealth Today","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/#organization","name":"UCHealth","url":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2020\/04\/24135149\/UCHealth-square-logo-1000x1000-1.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2020\/04\/24135149\/UCHealth-square-logo-1000x1000-1.jpg","width":1000,"height":1000,"caption":"UCHealth"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/uchealthorg\/","https:\/\/x.com\/uchealth","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/uchealth\/","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/school\/14839\/","https:\/\/www.pinterest.com\/uchealthorg\/","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UC41SJI79yjZIe96OajzN22g"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/#\/schema\/person\/2974962d9c19ae1bbcec3250ab830fbc","name":"Kati Blocker, UCHealth","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/62cfc49002cce7d835ff120702e1e8cd4b871b3468a4fed7137fbfa60674c6b3?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/62cfc49002cce7d835ff120702e1e8cd4b871b3468a4fed7137fbfa60674c6b3?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/62cfc49002cce7d835ff120702e1e8cd4b871b3468a4fed7137fbfa60674c6b3?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Kati Blocker, UCHealth"},"description":"Kati Blocker has always been driven to learn and explore the world around her. And every day, as a writer for UCHealth, Kati meets inspiring people, learns about life-saving technology, and gets to know the amazing people who are saving lives each day. Even better, she gets to share their stories with the world. As a journalism major at the University of Wyoming, Kati wrote for her college newspaper. She also studied abroad in Swansea, Wales, while simultaneously writing for a Colorado metaphysical newspaper. After college, Kati was a reporter for the Montrose Daily Press and the Telluride Watch, covering education and health care in rural Colorado, as well as city news and business. When she's not writing, Kati is creating her own stories with her husband Joel and their two children.","url":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/author\/katieblocker\/"}]}},"coauthors":[{"id":2164,"name":"Kati Blocker","link":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/author\/katieblocker\/"}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7941","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2164"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7941"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7941\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26827,"href":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7941\/revisions\/26827"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7943"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7941"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7941"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7941"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}