45-year-old mayor needs pacemaker after long-haul COVID-19 fight

The mayor of Topeka, Kansas, said that she requires a pacemaker after surviving a long-haul bout against COVID-19, according to The Washington Post.

During a council meeting on Tuesday, Topeka Mayor Michelle De La Isla (D) told her constituents that she will undergo a procedure to place a pacemaker in her heart due to damage the critical muscle endured after her arduous battle with the disease. 

The mayor is one of the millions of Americans who have suffered from long-haul COVID-19, a condition in which the body is unable to shake symptoms of the virus, according to the Post. 

De La Isla, who recently ran for her state’s 2nd Congressional District seat, was infected with the virus in January, and spent two weeks at a medical facility. The disease attacked her digestive system, and as a result she underwent surgery to remove her gallbladder, according to the newspaper. 

De La Isla, 45, told CBS affiliate KWCH that she didn’t expect to suffer long-term health issues from the virus, citing her healthy lifestyle. 

“Not at all – especially with all the work that I’ve done to remain healthy. I’m a runner. I ride my bike. I’m one of the healthiest people you’d come across, and I thought I was going to beat it,” De La Isla told KWCH. 

The mayor’s recent health news comes as the country is experiencing a recent surge of COVID-19 cases, as the highly contagious delta variant is hitting the unvaccinated areas of the U.S. particularly hard. 

Forty-six percent of Kansas citizens are fully vaccinated, which is slightly under the national average of 50 percent, the Post reported. 

De La Isla, a mother of three, told attendees at the council meeting to get vaccinated, saying that she’s a “huge advocate for those who chose to get the vaccine.” 

The mayor has received her first vaccine shot following her longterm battle with the virus, the Post noted.