President Falwell shares story of heart surgery with new technology Heartstitch

Becki Falwell cried alone in a northern Virginia hospital waiting room as her husband underwent heart surgery. 

Her husband, Liberty University President Jerry Falwell, had been suffering from migraines since his teen years and in 2016 suffered two minor strokes, which left no lasting damage. 

“At that time, (the doctors) found the hole (in my heart) in Lynchburg, but they said it was too small to have caused a stroke,” President Falwell said. “They did every test imaginable, and so it was kind of scary for two years living without knowing what caused the strokes because otherwise, I was completely healthy.”

In May of 2018, Dr. Ben Carson, a neurosurgeon and the U.S. secretary of housing and urban development, addressed Liberty University’s College of Osteopathic Medicine’s first graduating class. While having a conversation with President Falwell after the event, Carson expressed to Falwell he had no doubt the strokes were caused by the hole his heart. 

“It was such a relief to find out what the cause was when I was talking with Ben Carson after graduation in May, when he told me that was absolutely the cause,” President Falwell said. “He had just the right person to fix it. It was such a relief to learn that information.”

Carson put President Falwell in touch with the inventor of a product called Heartstitch that allows surgeons to fix holes in patients’ hearts that would otherwise be considered too small to fix with traditional and more invasive practices.

Anthony Nobles, founder and CEO of Heartstitch invented the device, along with other medical devices.

“We’d been talking about it all summer, but (in early September) my hands were sort of tingling for a week or so,” President Falwell said. “I told the inventor about it and he said, ‘No, no, no. We’ve got to get this done
right now.’”

Within three days of speaking with Nobles, the Falwells flew to Fairfax, Virginia, where they met with the surgeon who would perform the procedure — Dr. Jim Thompson, a pediatric
cardiologist.

Thompson made the decision to perform the surgery during the Falwells’ inaugural trip to see him. Thompson briefed the Falwells on all aspects of the procedure, which informed them, but also created worry.

“So, at one point, he just spouted out all the complications (including) death. ‘You could bleed out,’ (he said.) ‘We could have to rip your heart open and all that,’” Becki Falwell said. “I was the only one in the family that heard all that.”

President Falwell worked to ensure his three children would not worry while he was undergoing this new procedure. 

“He doesn’t worry as much as I do because he knows he’s going to be around a lot longer,” Becki Falwell said. “For me, I was worried, upset and praying a lot.”

President Falwell focused on the positive sides of the procedure, which kept him from being worried about the possible complications. 

“(Jerry) was more focused on the positive part of not having migraines and the strokes,” Becki Falwell said.

Becki Falwell continued to worry while she waited for an update from the doctor on her husband’s wellbeing.

“When the doctor came back out and told me everything was fine, it was just a gigantic relief, and Jerry … was just fine,” Becki
Falwell said. 

President Falwell recovered quickly from his procedure and is hopeful for how the procedure will transform the field of medicine. He also hopes that the attention he is getting from experiencing this new procedure will help spread the word and benefit even more people than it
already had.

 “It’s nice to not have to worry about getting migraine headaches anymore,” President Falwell said. “I don’t get as winded at the gym as I used to because all the blood’s going to my lungs now like it’s supposed to. It’s not leaking through the hole. … I’m really blessed.”