Wilmington woman becomes first person in NC to receive new heart procedure

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — Wilmington resident Pam Woodell said she rarely ever gets sick. That is, until December last year. 

While delivering meals for the Cape Fear Volunteer Center, she noticed something alarming while sitting in her car.  

“I was waiting in the car while a grandchild delivered a meal for me and you know how you pull down the visor, and your looking there; and I go ‘oh my gosh, I can see my heart beating here,’” Woodell recalled. 

Woodell soon learned she was suffering from atrial fibrillation—also known as a-fib—which is when the heart beats irregularly.  

Woodell recalled that she was frequently dizzy and could barely walk down the street. 

That is until she became the second person in the US and the first North Carolinian to receive a procedure known as “Pulse Field Ablation” at Novant Health New Hanover Reigonal Medical Center.  

It works by inserting a specialized wire into the body through a small incision.      

The wire winds through arteries until it reaches the heart, where it will send small electrical pulses to get the heart back into rhythm.  

Dr. Taylor Bazemore conducted the procedure and said it’s less invasive than previous methods where the problematic tissue would be heated or cooled.

“With pulse field ablation, we’re able to effectively and efficiently treat those heart tissues, but it has much less risk of injury to the surrounding organs,” Bazemore said. 

Woodell said that after the procedure she was back to walking her dogs and selling houses by the next day.  

“It’s really weird to think that you can do that much curative work with this very very thin metal wire.”  

Bazemore added that it’s a privilege to provide the new procedure to patients. 

“To be able to offer a procedure that can get her feeling better and help her to live her life, it’s very gratifying.”