It was the end of the work day. Chad O’Farrell, 36, of Bristol was the last outpatient to be released from UConn Health’s endoscopy unit.

But just before discharge his nurse noticed something just wasn’t right on his heart monitor.

“Chad was all set to go home but I noticed he was having an abnormal heart rhythm,” says Jen Carlson, RN, his endoscopy unit nurse. She immediately printed out the abnormal reading to show it to Dr. Ronald Burt, the anesthesiologist, who then ordered an electrocardiogram test.

“I was the last procedure case of the day,” shared O’Farrell. “All the staff were getting off work but UConn Health took the extra time and now I am so very thankful.”

The ECG test showed that O’Farrell was having serious extra heartbeats. UConn Health cardiologist Dr. Peter Schulman was able to make a diagnosis of Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW) syndrome. The rare condition is usually present from birth and can cause a rapid heartbeat leading to dizziness. According to Schulman, WPW involves an extra electrical pathway inside the heart that actually creates dangerous short-circuits in the heart’s electrical system and can lead to sudden cardiac death.

“You know things are not good when a team of doctors come in right away to talk and examine you,” says O’Farrell. “As scary as the situation was, my nurse and all the rest of the UConn Health staff were very professional and kept me calm.”

“He had no idea anything was wrong,” says Carlson. “Our entire endoscopy, anesthesiology, and cardiology teams jumped right in to work together to ensure Chad was okay and his irregular heart rhythm condition was stabilized and ultimately fixed.”

O’Farrell shared that his biological father passed away from a heart condition in his thirties and he is currently looking to find out if it may have been the same genetic WPW syndrome. He also realizes that his recent dizzy spells were the result of his rapid heartbeat condition and not the prescribed medication he was recently taking.

The day after receiving his diagnosis in June O’Farrell had a successful cardiac ablation procedure by Dr. Heiko Schmitt, co-director of the Heart Rhythm Center at the Pat and Jim Calhoun Cardiology Center of UConn Health. The minimally invasive procedure pinpointed the exact area of O’Farrell’s heart causing the irregular heart rhythm and eliminated the heart’s electrical dysfunction by ablating or burning the tiny nerve endings which were the culprit.

“I feel better,” says O’Farrell. “Since my ablation procedure I am pretty confident I have not had any rapid heartbeat or dizziness.”

O’Farrell added: “I am very fortunate. We have a 14-month-old son at home so it’s imperative that I be around.”

He is now looking forward to what matters most.

“I am hopefully spending a lot more time with my family,” says O’Farrell, who is moving to North Carolina this July with his wife, son, and newly repaired heart.

“Thanks UConn Health. I am very grateful.”

Carlson added: “It’s pretty awesome to be able to make a lifesaving catch like this for one of our patients. I am so happy everything got resolved successfully for Chad.”

O’Farrell’s care was a true UConn Health team effort from his endoscopy nurse, anesthesiologist, Fellow Dr. John Tiu, to the cardiologists who made the diagnosis and ultimately fixed his heart.