Pothole jolts Nebraska man's heart back into normal rhythm, paramedics say

For most drivers, potholes are an unsightly nuisance. But for a paramedic team in Nebraska, the road hazard helped treat a patient with a rapid heartbeat, reports NBC affiliate WOWT.

As paramedics were transporting a 59-year-old man to CHI Health Lakeside Hospital in Omaha, the vehicle hit a large pothole.

The bump jolted the man's heart, which was beating at 200 beats per minute, back into a normal rhythm, paramedics said.

Andrew Goldsweig, MD, a cardiologist at Omaha-based Nebraska Medicine, called the situation a rare, but well-described phenomenon. 

"One way to treat that is with an electrical shock," he told WOWT. "Turns out, you can do that with a pothole."

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