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I had atrial flutter a few times just before and right after my mitral valve replacement. Once it was controlled with amiodarone. The other two times I was cardioverted. In those flutter sessions, my heart rate would be 150-160 bpm for hours. About 3 months after surgery, I opted for...

I woke up with the breathing tube still in. I was still quite groggy and don't remember the breathing tube causing any stress for me. Very soon after waking up, they removed the breathing tube and told me to cough as they pulled it out. Still somewhat sedated, that wasn't bad either. I do...

I've only seen this once and then it was not related to warfarin or heart surgery. I was hiking in Ireland during an unusually hot spell there with temperatures in the 85F / 30C. (Both conditions that @Superman mentions) One of our party (a doctor) developed this condition over a couple of...

My surgery was at the Mayo Clinic in MN. The vacuum thing was interesting. It pulled a small, but constant negative pressure on the incision. Supposedly it helped healing and removed any fluid or potential infection accummulation. Seemed to work, but having a small vacuum pump attached to...

I received typical sutures (stitches). In the hospital, the wound was covered by a tight waterproof seal with a vacuum tube attached. This stayed on for several days before removing the vacuum tube. Before I left the hospital, all wound coverings were removed and I had no bandages covering...

I had my first shot of the Pfizer vaccine in mid-March, second one 3 weeks later. No issues, some slight soreness in my arm, but that's it. Talked to the heath care worker who administered the vaccine and he said no known issues with mechanical heart valve or anti-coagulation. As @pellicle...

Wow, 92%, I don't understand that at all. This is necessary to assure our health and failure to manage your warfarin properly has a direct correlation to negative outcomes. I've always joked that 50% of people are below average. Now I think the number below average is much higher. ;)

How long you had the MV for (when)? October 2018 Why did you get the MV (disease, congenital, emergency)? Had moderate regurgitation due to mitral valve prolapse that we'd been watching for a few years, but bacterial endocarditis pushed me over the edge and forced emergency surgery What is...

I had been doing them annually for several years, both before and after surgery. I just figured it would always be an annual thing. I was surprised (and happy) at the cardiologist's recommendation of a 10 year interval.

I was on diuretics in the hospital post surgery (probably Lasix) and also at home for a period of time. Not sure about the dosage at the hospital, but at home, it was a very low dose. The docs said it was just to take some load off of my healing body.

I have a mechanical mitral valve. I had my last echo at Mayo Clinic in August 2020 (about 22 months post surgery). The results were great, all measures within normal ranges for someone without a mechanical valve. My cardiologist (also at Mayo), said that unless other issues come up, I did not...

I've taken (on and off) vitamins from Clotacin - Clotacin, A Multi-vitamin without K for people on Blood Thinners

I shave with a double edged blade as I always have. The occasional nick isn’t and issue at all — hardly bleed any more that I did before going on warfarin I don’t think infections are at an increased risk on warfarin. At least I’ve never heard of any actual risk increase. Definitely not...

I’m a relative newcomer compared to most here. I got my St Jude mitral valve 25 months ago at the age of 56. No issues post surgery and life is totally normal now. Sure I’m taking warfarin, but it’s a non-event and just part of my new normal.

Perhaps you can find a lab that will do a blood draw. My local clinic does INR tests via blood draws only. Never a problem getting blood with a needle. :)

My wife gave me an Apple watch as a gift following my mitral valve replacement. I enjoy the watch and the integration with my iPhone -- very elegant and very handy. With regard to my health, I use it to monitor my pulse during workouts and trend my resting and active pulse rates over time. I...

Since you’ve seen your doc, this has probably already been considered, but are you on any medications that limit your heart rate. For example beta blockers do that. I had the same problem following my MVR. I cut back on the dosage and that helped some, but even at a minimal dose, my heart rate...

I have had many, if not all, of these symptoms on occasion since my mitral valve replacement (mechanical) in October 2018. The incidents rarely last longer than 30 seconds, but recently the frequency seems to be increasing. My cardiologist thought it might be a transient ischemic attack (TIA...

I just went in for a dental cleaning a few days ago. The dentist started seeing patients for non-emergency procedures this week. I was a bit uneasy about it, not because of my mech valve, but just the exposure risk of someone having their hands in my mouth for a half hour. As usual, I took my...

This just posted by Kaiser Health News suggests a strong link between heart damage and COVID-19. If this holds true, we may not be at a higher risk to contract the virus, but the health implications for someone with previous heart issues or valve replacement could be significant...