About us
The mission of “Hearts of Heroes: A FREE Screening Program with Coronary Artery Calcium Scoring for First Responders,” is to provide coronary artery calcium scoring to local police and fire departments to allow for more accurate and contemporary risk stratification and treatment in an effort to prevent acute cardiovascular events including myocardial infarction (heart attack), revascularization (stents or bypass surgery), and reduce morbidity associated with cardiovascular disease.
What is coronary artery calcium scoring?
Coronary artery calcium scoring (also referred to as calcium score or calcium scan) is non-invasive. There is no need for an IV to be placed, there is no IV dye required, and the examination is painless. The coronary arteries supply oxygen-rich blood to the heart muscle. Calcium is a sign or marker of coronary artery disease. The calcium score (number) provides an idea of the individual risk of significant heart disease in the next few years.
Who should get tested?
Prior to calcium scoring screening examination, all participants will be screened for appropriateness. Screening will be performed using a questionnaire (provided in this document).
First responders with a previous history of coronary artery disease (personal history of having angioplasty or stent, personal history of coronary artery bypass surgery, or prior heart attack), may not be appropriate for this examination. Men who are less than 30 years of age and women who are less than 35 years of age may proceed with testing; however, the likelihood of a coronary artery calcium score of 0 is quite high. For those who do not meet criteria as noted above, exercise stress testing will be arranged.
All coronary artery calcium scoring examinations are currently performed at the Millennium Diagnostic Center located in the Tri-Atria Building. All images will be interpreted by board-certified cardiologists and radiologists with respect to the heart and all non-cardiac structures, respectively.
Leadership
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Justin Trivax, MD FACC FSCAI
Cardiologist
Dr. Justin Trivax is a board-certified interventional cardiologist specializing in all aspects of cardiovascular medicine. He graduated from the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor) in 1999 and from Wayne State University School of Medicine (Detroit) in 2003. He completed his internal medicine residency (2007), cardiovascular medicine fellowship (2010), and interventional cardiology fellowship (2010) at Beaumont Health in Royal Oak, Michigan where he served as the chief resident in internal medicine, chief clinical cardiology fellow, and chief interventional cardiology fellow. His academic interests include performing complicated and technically challenging coronary and vascular procedures, studying the effects of prolonged strenuous exercise, and all aspects of preventive cardiovascular medicine. He has been named Hour Detroit Top Doc from 2012-2022. Dr. Trivax is a fellow of the American College of Cardiology and a fellow of the Society of Coronary Angiography and Intervention. He is a part of the clinical faculty at Beaumont Health in Royal Oak, Assistant Professor at Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine, and Clinical Assistant Professor at Wayne State School of Medicine.
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Herman Kado, MD FACC FSCAI
Cardiologist
Dr. Herman Kado is a board-certified interventional cardiologist specializing in all aspects of cardiovascular medicine with a special interest and expertise in the interventional approach of blood clots in the legs and in the lungs. He graduated from Wayne State University (Detroit) in 2002 and from Wayne State University School of Medicine in 2006. He completed his internal medicine residency at the University of Illinois College of Medicine in Chicago (2009), cardiovascular medicine fellowship at the University of Florida College of Medicine in Jacksonville, Florida (2012) and interventional cardiology fellowship (2013) at Borgess Medical Center, Borgess Heart Institute in Kalamazoo (2014). Dr. Kado’s academic interests include opening arteries in the legs to prevent amputations, studying the efficacy of novel coronary artery techniques, and all aspects of vascular medicine. He has been named Hour Detroit Top Doc from 2015-2022. Dr. Kado is a fellow of the American College of Cardiology and a fellow of the Society of Coronary Angiography and Intervention. He is an Assistant Professor at Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine and Clinical Assistant Professor at Wayne State School of Medicine.
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Tessa M. Trivax
Co-Founder
Tessa Trivax is a junior at Wylie E. Groves High School in Beverly Hills, Michigan. She enjoys down-hill skiing, exercising, and live country music. With her sister Sienna, her vision for Hearts for Heroes was to provide appropriate heart screening for every first responder in the country to prevent heart-related complications. She is interested in combining fashion and social media and created all of the Hearts for Heroes merchandise (which can be found on heartsforheroesmi.com), controls the website content, and runs social media for this endeavor. Tessa is in charge of ensuring all of the results reach the first responders and provides appropriate contacts for follow-up.
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Sienna Q. Trivax
Co-Founder
Sienna Trivax is a sophomore at Cranbrook Kingswood High School in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. She enjoys competitive water-skiing, down-hill skiing, and solving complicated chemistry equations. With her older sister Tessa, her vision for Hearts for Heroes was to provide appropriate heart screening for every first responder in the country to prevent heart-related complications. She is interested in a career in medicine, possibly working with children with complex congential heart disease as a cardiothoracic surgeon. She has the responsibilities of creating scheduling of testing, ensuring timeliness of results to all first responders, and helps with quality control of the Hearts for Heroes.