Many, if not all of you, know Roger Gros, Publisher of Global Gaming Business magazine. Last July, Roger bumped his head, causing some neck pain.
By September of 2022, the pain had migrated to his lower back and hips. Gros saw several doctors, including a neurosurgeon, chiropractor, and acupuncturist. He underwent physical therapy, CT scans, and pain management, but by April 2023, the pain was so severe that Gros needed a walker and, at times, a wheelchair to get around his home.
At this point, his duties as publisher shifted to all employees of GGB and several freelancers; he was unable to maintain his typical workload.
Gros contacted industry friends, notably former American Gaming Association President and CEO Frank Fahrenkopf; Rino Armeni, head of the Las Vegas Business Academy; and Gun Lake Casino CEO Sal Semola in Michigan, hoping they could help.
Fortunately, the three men knew Larry Ruvo, senior managing director of Southern Glazier’s Wine & Spirits of Nevada since 1969. After his father died from Alzheimer’s in 1994, Ruvo founded the Cleveland Clinic’s Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health in Downtown Las Vegas. Ruvo’s team helped Gros get an appointment at the clinic, where several MRIs were conducted.
A neurologist at the center thought Gros suffered from internal inflammation as well as a spinal issue. It was recommended that Gros go to the main facility, and the following week, he arrived at the Cleveland Clinic’s main campus in Ohio for three days of medical appointments.
On his first day at the clinic, Gros visited a cardiologist and internal medicine physician – and before the day was over, they had diagnosed the source of his pain. Osteomyelitis, an inflammation of the bone caused by an infection that doesn’t respond to typical medication, had been the source of Gros’ months-long back and hip pain. The cardiologist also diagnosed Gros with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a thickening of the heart muscle, and endocarditis, an inflammation of the heart valve.
Gros was admitted to the Cleveland Clinic’s cardiac care ICU unit, and it was determined that his spine infection was caused by cardiobacterium hominis, a slow-growing bacteria normally present in the mouth and upper respiratory tract. The bacteria most likely came from a bad tooth or two then infected his blood which sat in his lower spine and flowed through his heart, also infecting his heart valves.
Gros had successful open-heart surgery on May 2, replacing his mitral and aortic valves, repairing the tricuspid valve, and performing a septal myectomy. Later he had a pacemaker implanted.
He is now at home in Boulder City, Nevada, recuperating and on the way to a full recovery, and wants to emphasize the importance of dental care as part of any wellness regimen.
Gros is grateful to the doctors and nurses at Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, the staff at Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health in Las Vegas, and to his longtime friends in the gaming industry.
