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Those NB bars... Those NB bars... Dawn: You said your Dr. warned you that the pain for MI surgery was about the same for the normal procedure due to the rib spreading - how was your pain level? Also, you can be sure I won't elect to have the MI AVR (if I qualify) unless I feel completely...

Go RU... Go RU... Bob H: Just to let you know - I am a RU grad, class of '82, so I am quite familiar with New Brunswick, NJ. I was hoping to get back there this fall for the Homecoming football game but until this AVR thing is settled, those plans are on hold of course... Thanks for all...

Thanks for all your replies! Thanks for all your replies! Thank you everyone (so far) for your 2 cents on this. I guess when the time comes I'll grill the surgeon a little more about his expertise with the MI procedure. In our one discussion I was very impressed about how open and candid he...

I was wondering how many of you had the minimally invasive (MI) AVR procedure? My surgeon said that he does it on about 15% of his patients and that it reduces pain, recovery time and blood loss (as can be expected). Also, instead of a 10-12 inch scar on the full sternotomy you only end up...

BTW, when the subject of tissue valves came up, this surgeon said he prefers the Medtronic Mosaic over the CE Perimount Magna (even w/ the thermofix treatment). His main reasons are that the Mosaic has a more natural leaflet shape (since it is a pig valve afterall) and that the life expectancy...

ATS Open Pivot ATS Open Pivot As a coincidence, the surgeon I met with a few days ago said they (Beaumont Hospital) now use the ATS Open Pivot mechanical valve instead of the St. Judes Regent because of the better hemodynamics with the ATS valve (better blood flow characteristics). I found...

The next test is.... The next test is.... I just got back from my meeting with the surgeon (Rich: It is Dr. Shannon from the SMCS (i.e., the Bassett group) you mentioned..). After a long discussion he decided that the best test will be an MRI which is good news for me since it is...

The TEE and me... The TEE and me... Al, yes at this point I will have the AVR at Beaumont (Royal Oak), although my only interface with them so far has been the 2nd opinion cardiologist that did not impress me. Hopefully the surgeon will be better... I will also ask about the TEE test...

ECG vs. Cath. Tests ECG vs. Cath. Tests I spoke with my primary cardiologist and a cardio technician and they both believe that the cath, test is more accurate than an ECG, one reason being that there is much less room for interpretive error in taking the measurements. Of course ECGs are used...

2nd Opinion Doctors 2nd Opinion Doctors After I posted the original message yesterday, I tried to contact my 2nd opinion cardio but he was unavailable. Even though I'm told he is highly respected in his field, his bedside manner was poor in my opinion. When I had an appt. with him to discuss...

:confused: Here is something I found to be a little disconcerting... This past January I had a stress echo done with the following results: Jan 2004 Mean pressure gradient: 50.5 mmHg (pre-test), 67.2 (post-test) Peak Velocity: 4.2 m/s (pre-test), 4.8 m/s (post-test) Valve area: 1.0 cm2...

Thanks for all the survey responses so far! Thanks for all the survey responses so far! Thanks everyone for all the survey responses so far, keep them coming. I have learned a lot, mainly that for most people being on Coumadin is not as bad as I feared, just something you eventually learn to...

Dear all users of Coumadin: Have a few minutes to take a survey? I am facing the prospect of AVR surgery in the coming year and probably like all of you were/are, I am concerned about having to take Coumadin. I've read most of the posts and learned a lot, but what I'd like to do is to try to...

I would like to thank everyone for their kind replies.... The funny thing is, now that I was given the news I have developed some of the classic symptoms in the past week - lightheadedness and some shortness of breath, even at rest. Undoubtedly this is a psychosomatic reaction due to the added...

I was just told last week that it may be time for the aortic valve replacement surgery. I am 43, work out a lot (but know my limits because of the AS) and am in very good shape. I was 1st told of my AS when I was 21. I just had a battery of tests done and went the full 15 minutes on the...