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Risks? Risks? Gee Norm, I lived and skied in the mountains of Colorado for thirty years. I think I know just a little bit about crashing and snow sports related injuries. Of course, there's inherent risk in pursuing activities that could involve impact injuries. There's risk for anyone who...

Weight Gain Weight Gain Geez, it'd be nice to be able to blame warfarin for weight gain rather than looking at all of the other issues (age, slower metabolic rate, and what I eat) that result in adding pounds. -Philip

Rehab Opportunities Rehab Opportunities Cardiologists vary with respect to their opinions concerning cardiac rehab. Even though I was in my early fifties when I had AVR surgery, my cardiologist indicated that he didn't always recommend rehab for his patients. He also told me that he wouldn't...

Help Help As others have noted, you've little choice but to get some help lined-up. Given your description of what you are facing with regards to surgery, it sounds like you've got some time to pursue lining-up some help. Lifting and carrying your young kids isn't the only issue you'll need...

Boading Boading You're certainly free to choose what you do or not do, but doing "blood thinning" meds shouldn't increase your risk of injury when snowboarding. I skied for a couple of years after AVR surgery and despite taking some hard falls, I fared just fine even though I was taking...

Rehab? Rehab? Cardiac rehab was enjoyable for me. My cardiologist dropped me into a program when I was two weeks post-op to slow me down and monitor the quickest recovery he had ever seen. The program was good because I could see the progress my heart was making. It gave me a lot of...

Dunce Cap? Dunce Cap? No Neil, I wouldn't want anyone who chooses tissue to wear a dunce cap and sit in the corner. As I've noted in numerous posts, I respect whatever choice people make with regards to valve choice. You're certainly correct. The risk of re-ops v. risks associated with...

Omg Omg OMG, bdryer... I hope you don't continue to skydive after you get your mechanical valve... geez, your parachute might not open and...well... you could bleed to death if you're taking coumadin and you hit the ground after jumping from a perfectly good airplane at 10,000 feet... Sorry...

"The risks involved in a re op are more or less the same as major problems with anti coags, to think otherwise is naive at best." Really? Okay, I'm happily naive. Where are the numbers to back this statement. Regardless of my personal preference for going mechanical, I really believe whichever...

Cold? Cold? Take a couple of shots of blackberry brandy and call me in the morning. -Philip

Stroke? Stroke? Geez, what's this stuff about having a stroke? It sounds like you've been listening to the evil, anti-coumadin fairies. Lots of us coumadin junkies live incredibly active lives. Despite my very active lifestyle, a stroke isn't something I even worry about. Life's like our...

Valves? Valves? Dave, As others have already mentioned, there are a number of different kinds of valves. This is true for valves in both the tissue and mechanical varieties. I haven't done much research on the availability of tissue replacement valves with a factory-attached aortic conduit...

Risk? Risk? Any kind of open heart surgery is a big deal. Many of us have gone through AVR surgery with the added complications of having aortic replacement. Yes, it adds some complications, but like others have said, a competent surgeon can handle the task. Some of us opted for replacement...

Dizzy? Dizzy? There are so many things that can cause one to feel light-headed and dizzy it's hard to even guess at a cause. It could be heart, exercise or medication related, but it could be something simple like an inner ear infection. In 2009, I had serious issues with getting dizzy and...

Tick... Tick Tick... Tick Body acoustics vary widely. Odds are pretty good that things will improve for you. It just takes time. -Philip

Consistent? Consistent? Just another opinion, but personally, I think consistency is overrated. My diet isn't consistent, nor is my intake of green tea. During weeks where my exercise program gets derailed by other issues and my diet is more erratic than usual, I'll check my INR more than once...

Ownership Ownership I never ever considered using a service like Phillips. Outright purchase was simply too easy. The rental and consultation service undoubtedly serves many people well. It wasn't a good fit for me. I didn't see how it would save me any money, but then, I had really lousy...

It sounds like your surgeon has a bright, positive perspective. You should listen to him and move on with your life. Unless I've missed something, it sounds like you've got a new valve that's functioning just fine. For the present, skip the worry stuff and move-on with your life. Have your...

Tube? Tube? Yeah, I was worried about dealing with the tube when I woke-up. I fought it when I woke-up, but I have no recollection of what happened. My wife gave me the details later. Evidently, I tried to chew through the tube since I couldn't get my hands loose to grab it. The nursing staff...

Monitoring Questions? Monitoring Questions? Many insurance companies cover the costs of monitors and many refuse to cover these costs. Mine initially refused to cover the purchase of my monitor. After purchasing a monitor on my own, I fought a six month battle to win reimbursement. Others have...