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After seeing your cardiologist and GP, I would think they would have advised you what to do if your heart rate stays low or goes lower, or at least how to reach someone. After my discharge I was given a lot of paperwork and it included numbers to call if I had problems. When I had Afib I was...

Welcome to the forum, Re. exercise. Your Dr's are advising you to avoid working out to avoid damaging your heart, not your pinky toe! If you really like working out I suggest that you take their advise so that you don't cause damage. That you are having pain while working out should be a...

Hi, Welcome to the other side. I had a couple episodes of afib within the first 2 months after my surgery. It is not uncommon. If you can get it under control through the first couple months it often resolves by itself. As far as sleeping, many use a recline - I did. Another option some use...

Getting a second opinion is about as far from throwing caution out the window as you can get. If I were you I would find a surgeon that you are comfortable with, and subscribes to the idea that body size matters. This isn't some fringe theory, it is something that some of the top Dr's in this...

This is so important these days. Dr's are rushed and so they take shortcuts. It would be interesting to hear what the Pharmacy's excuse was. You would think this would be automated by now. Medical errors are the third leading cause of death in the US...

It's not something discussed so much but I think our issues and especially surgeries can be very hard on our significant others. If the worst case happens and we don't survive, our problems are over, and the problems for those we leave behind just begin. For this reason I think it is helpful...

In my view, stress is your minds reaction to a situation. While you cannot control the situations you face you have some influence over your reaction to them. Granted that situations are not all the same so it should not be expected that you can react to them all the same, still there are...

Hi, I had a valve sparing aortic aneurysm (root and ascending) replacement. It's my understanding that it is at least as difficult as the same surgery with the valve replacement so I would think costs would be pretty similar, though without the cost of the valve for my surgery. The bill for...

Best wishes for a successful surgery and speedy recovery!

Cleveland Clinic is the top hospital in the US for Cardiology and Heart Surgery, and based on the link posted earlier it sounds like they subscribe to the body size criteria, but Duke is #5: http://health.usnews.com/best-hospitals/rankings/cardiology-and-heart-surgery You can't do better than...

Hi, I think that I have pasted that calculator as well. In the American College of Cardiology guidelines, it says something to the effect that there is not enough information to use the formula's that account for body size, and so the general guidelines are 5.5cm. So I'm sure many Dr's will...

There have been some reports and discussions of people feeling a thumping in their chest. I think this was associated more to aneurysm repair than to valve replacement. I had a valve sparing aneurysm repair and feel a thumping whenever I breath deeply or in certain positions. My Dr's didn't...

It's quite a shock to be healthy and then be told you need heart surgery. So many of us can relate to this surprise - I didn't even know I had a heart murmur, much less a BAV and an aortic aneurysm. A month after finding out I was having heart surgery. But having been through it, it all goes...

Yes, but nowhere near the suggested dose of 400mg. This website lists the top 10 foods containing B2 (Riboflavin): https://www.healthaliciousness.com/articles/foods-high-in-riboflavin-vitamin-B2.php Beef and Lamb are 3rd on the list with 0.86mg B2 per 100g of meat, or 1.51mg per steak. To get...

2 x 100mg, twice per day. That's 400mg per day, the same as what was used in the study I referenced.

It's interesting that so many have migraine symptoms after open heart surgery. Something else many of us can share. Before and after surgery I would sometimes have severe headaches several hours after exercise, especially if it was hot. I didn't used to think of them as migraines but since...

Wow, rough day to say the least. Never heard of something like that. CT scan is how they diagnose aortic dissection. Sounds like the earlier radiologist misread it - everyone makes mistakes sometimes.

I've read that aortic aneurysms grow 1-2mm per year on average, but individual results can vary widely. I've also read that beyond 4.7cm, further growth is virtually inevitable, so perhaps below that level further growth is not inevitable. Is your Dr. using the surgical criteria that accounts...

Hi, There is a presentation by a Mayo clinic Dr. that has been posted and much discussed on this forum. If I could summarize the hour long presentation in just a sentence, it basically says what the OP says. That with self management, outcomes with mechanical valves are improved to the point...

A key factor for you might be when you are allowed to drive, which is typically 6 weeks.