Faith, Medicine, and Miracles: Angel's Journey of Survival at OU Health

When Angel Arevalo moved to Oklahoma to help start a new church, he never expected to face a life-threatening medical emergency. But with the diligent care of the medical experts at OU Health, and the power of prayer, Angel is alive to share his powerful story.

At 24 years old, Angel moved from California in 2022, with a team from Victory Outreach. With over 700 churches and ministries worldwide, the organization wanted to establish a presence in Oklahoma City. Angel worked with the team to grow the church which also provides over 300 rehabilitation services worldwide for people with drug dependency.

The last thing Angel remembers from his medical emergency on Dec. 14, 2024, was the ride in an ambulance to OU Health University of Oklahoma Medical Center. But signs of his condition started 18 months earlier when he started losing weight. At first, Angel wasn’t concerned but when people started commenting on his weight loss, and he started to feel fatigued, he knew he should see a doctor. However, he put it off as he wasn’t feeling unwell.

Angel lost over 40 pounds despite no changes to his diet, and he started to experience heart palpitations. A few days before he finally went to the emergency room at OU Health Edmond Medical Center, Angel woke at 2 a.m., struggling to take a breath. After three days of waking with breathlessness, severe flu-like symptoms, and being unable to hold any food down, he knew something was seriously wrong.

Making Tough Decisions

An examination of Angel’s heart at OU Health Edmond Medical Center showed that it was only working at 5% capacity. He had atrial fibrillation, a condition that leads to the heart beating fast and irregularly. The doctors at OU Health tried to control his heart rate but despite all the necessary measures, Angel went into cardiac arrest.

Cardiac arrest is when the heart suddenly stops beating, which means it can't pump blood to the brain and other vital organs.

Angel was given CPR and transferred to OU Health University of Oklahoma Medical Center and placed under the care of advanced heart failure transplant and interventional cardiologist, Dr. Mohit Pahuja, M.D., director of mechanical circulatory support and cardiac inpatient at OU Health and assistant professor of medicine at the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine.

Angel was unconscious and his situation was dire. His heart was barely functioning and as a result, his liver and kidneys weren’t working. He had acidosis, a condition where the blood becomes too acidic due to the kidneys being unable to remove the acid.

“We gave Angel five different medications to increase his blood pressure, but his heart was not working,” said Dr. Pahuja. “We knew that he couldn’t survive for much longer and although patients who had been in cardiac arrest for as long as Angel are generally not good candidates for heart/lung machines, we made the decision to place him on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). He was so young — we had to give him a chance.”

ECMO is a medical treatment that supports patients with severe heart or lung problems. It works by circulating blood outside the body through a machine that adds oxygen and removes carbon dioxide to let the heart and lungs rest. This process helps the heart and lungs rest and recover by temporarily taking over their functions.

Dr. Pahuja activated the shock team which included critical care doctors and cardiothoracic surgeon Dr. Shinobu Itagaki, M.D., assistant professor at OU College of Medicine.

Angel was taken to the catheter lab and two tubes called cannulas were inserted into his blood vessels — one tube draws blood out of the body and the other returns oxygenated blood back to the body. The tubes are connected to the ECMO machine, so it can remove carbon dioxide from the blood, and add oxygen.

While the procedure helps in improving overall circulation of the body, Dr. Pahuja said that it can sometimes increase pressure on the heart as blood is coming in the opposite direction from the legs. To help deter this, a balloon pump was placed in Angel’s heart to support the forward flow from the heart.

Treating the Diagnosis

Family and friends, including his pastor, flew from California to be at Angel’s bedside. Many people were praying for him and believing for a miracle, but his situation was critical. The team was concerned that Angel’s brain may also have suffered from lack of blood flow, and monitored him closely in the ICU, hoping to see any signs of movement.

Tests revealed that Angel had untreated hyperthyroidism and experienced a thyrotoxic storm. This rare but life-threatening condition occurs when the thyroid gland releases a large amount of thyroid hormones in a short period. It is a severe complication of hyperthyroidism and can lead to a hypermetabolic state, causing the body's metabolism to speed up dangerously. Dr. Pahuja consulted with an endocrinologist who started Angel on four medications to treat the hyperthyroidism. All they could do was wait.

After 48 hours on ECMO, with Angel’s circulatory system improving, he was placed on dialysis to remove the toxicities from his kidneys. But he still had shown no signs of movement.

An Amazing Turn Around

Angel’s friends and family kept praying for him. A friend from church sat with him in the hospital and prayed for his recovery.

“She was praying for me quietly at first, and then she started praying more fervently,” said Angel. “As she continued to pray, I suddenly stood up. I don’t remember any of it as I was unconscious, but I know that this was the first sign of brain activity that showed the doctors I was recovering.”

Angel continued to improve until finally, his heart and lungs had improved enough for him to be taken off the ECMO machine. After nine days he awoke from the coma — it was two days after Christmas.

Two and half weeks after being admitted, Angel was finally able to go home.

“I have been told how close to dying I was,” said Angel. “But obviously God has a purpose for me. My heart is now working at 48% capacity, and I’m believing that will continue to improve. I am so grateful for Dr. Pahuja and the team — they worked so hard to keep me alive. I’m thankful I am still here doing God’s work and pursuing my faith.”

Lifesaving Care for the Most Complex Cases

“Angel’s case was truly extraordinary,” said Dr. Pahuja. “He was so young and so close to dying. Angel has a strong faith in God, and our multidisciplinary team has trust in our ability to save someone in such a serious condition. Angel was lucky to be at the right place at the right time to be able to survive this. The University of Oklahoma Medical Center has the expertise to provide lifesaving care that very few other centers can.”

The University of Oklahoma Medical Center stands as the state's flagship comprehensive academic hospital, providing the broadest spectrum of medical and surgical services in the region. As Oklahoma's only Level I Trauma Center, it serves as a critical resource for injury prevention and treatment across multiple states.

Request an appointment or get a second opinion when you visit with OU Health cardiovascular specialists or cardiac surgeons in Oklahoma City, Edmond or Tulsa.