Toni Braxton underwent emergency heart surgery, was 'touch and go'
26.04.2023 - 12:55
/ foxnews.com
Toni Braxton divulged she is lucky to be alive, seven months after undergoing emergency heart surgery for a blocked coronary artery. The singer, who has been transparent in her battle with autoimmune diease lupus erythematosus, shared she had fallen behind in her regimented precautionary care, which includes regular urine and blood tests. She was also experiencing chest pain. After initially dismissing the pain, Braxton ultimately sought medical treatment.
"I kept putting it off thinking, 'Oh, I'm fine. I'll be okay.' But my doctor was persistent, and I went to get tested in the last week of September. I did a specialized test, and they looked at my heart and saw some abnormalities," Braxton revealed to People magazine.
"I found out that I needed a coronary stent. My left main coronary artery was 80% blocked.The doctors told me I could've had a massive heart attack, I would not have survived." "It was a traumatic moment for me. I was in shock," Braxton says of learning she had a more serious condition.
"I remember that day because my chest was aching often, just hurting. And I thought I was just sad because unfortunately my sister [Traci Braxton] had just passed and I thought, 'Wow, I'm really aching in my heart for my sister.' And come to find out, of course I was sad about my sister, but I also had underlying health issues. It was my body talking to me, telling me something's not quite right." The heart attack, known as a widowmaker, is one in "which you have a full blockage in your heart’s biggest artery.This artery, the left anterior descending (LAD) artery, sends oxygen-rich blood to your heart’s left ventricle," per the Cleveland Clinic.