A life-saving maneuver: Husband holds wife upside down to keep her heart beating
An extraordinary medical case in an Indiana emergency room saw a husband carrying his wife upside down by her legs to keep her alive. This improvised rescue was the only way to maintain the connection of her disconnected pacemaker lead until surgery.
An unusual and bizarre medical case occurred in an emergency room in Indiana when a tall man named Jason appeared at the entrance carrying his wife Mary, a petite woman in her 60s, completely upside down while holding her by her legs. The sight, which resembled a scene from a comedy movie, caused panic among security guards and those present, but it soon became clear that it was an improvised and brilliant rescue operation that kept her alive, as reported in the science magazine 'Discover'.
The drama began shortly after Mary was discharged home following a successful surgery in which a pacemaker was implanted by cardiologist Dr. Louis F. Janira due to severe heart problems and dizziness. According to her husband, when they returned home, Mary coughed and collapsed. From that moment on, any attempt to sit her up or lay her down resulted in an immediate loss of consciousness, and only holding her upside down prevented her from fainting.
When Dr. Janira examined the case in the ER, he asked Jason to lay her down for an examination. The moment Mary was placed on her back, her pulse dropped and within seconds the monitor screen showed a flat line with no pulse at all. Jason reacted immediately and lifted her up by her legs again, and almost miraculously, the heart rate returned to normal and she regained consciousness.
The doctor immediately understood the solution to the medical mystery:
"The pacemaker lead connected to the right ventricle of the heart had apparently disconnected following the strong cough, but paradoxically, the inverted position caused the lead to reconnect temporarily and allow electrical stimulation to the heart."
Mary was quickly transferred to the operating room while still being held by her legs by her devoted husband. The next day, she was discharged after doctors successfully re-secured the lead in her pacemaker.
