A new member of the AVR club

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Jon

New member
Joined
Apr 17, 2010
Messages
2
Location
Liverpool, UK
Hi everyone,

My name is Jon. I’m 26, and I live in Liverpool, UK. I had my rather leaky bicuspid aortic valve replaced just over two weeks ago with a mechanical one (ATS medical - 29mm, I believe) at Liverpool Heart and Chest hospital.

I felt compelled to write something to introduce myself because I’ve found this forum absolutely invaluable over the last few weeks. The most significant sources of concern for me since my operation were the very fierce migraines that I was having—pretty much non-stop—from day 3 to 7 post-op, and the ventricular ectopics (PVCs - same thing?) that started a few days ago and caused me to go back to hospital to get them checked out. With the ectopic beats, my heart beat seemed to splutter and stutter a lot for a couple of days, and it settled on a rate of 45bpm for the best part of Wednesday, which was a little disconcerting. However, since getting two good nights sleep, everything has settled down a lot more and my heart rate has returned to 70-75bpm while resting. It’s surprising how strange some of the things your heart can do without it actually being indicative of anything harmful!

It’s been hugely reassuring at times to read about other people’s experiences. I’d like to thank everyone for contributing to creating a community with such a wealth of helpful information. I hope I can be of use to others in a similar way, too.

J
 
Hi Jon and welcome to this wonderful site. Congratulations on your surgery. I hope your recovery continues to go smoothly now that things have settled down. Best wishes :cool:
 
Hi Jon & welcome to VR! Glad to know that things seem to be settling down now for you. The healing process takes a while & is different for each of us but eventually you will start feeling better and better.

As Bina said, many of us do have to go back into the hospital during those first few weeks after OHS for some minor setbacks, so hang in there. The worst is overwith! :)
 
Welcome, Jon

Welcome, Jon

Wecome aboard, Jon. I can only say that like you, this community has made my own experience of these past months tremendously better than it would have been otherwise. It is difficult to think of hearing the news and getting ready for surgery then dealing with the issues of recovery by myself.

Larry
 
Thanks for the welcome messages, everyone.

This has all come around quite suddenly for me - I didn't even know that I had a bicuspid valve until the middle of March, by which time it was leaking quite badly. I went to see my doctor after feeling breathless and very tired for a few days, and now, a little over a month later, I'm sitting here recovering from surgery and getting used to having a new valve. Life is what happens to you when you're busy making other plans, as the saying goes.
 
Welcome to our forum Jon. There are many wise people aboard here and they will answer any question that you might have. I'm so glad that you came through your surgery okay. It's always better on this side of the mountain. It just takes some of us longer to get there and stay there. I'm looking at another valve replacement in the very near future. I was under so much stress last week I thought that was going to be the week, but I made it through and am feeling so much better. I had my first AVR in 2004, a pigs valve. I was praying that it would last about 20 years but I don't think it is going to make it. Best wishes and just keep getting better.
 
Welcome to the forum Jon! I am sorry you needed surgery, but am happy to see another ATS'er.
(I have an ATS Open Pivot AP360, which has turned the clock back 10 or even 20 years for me!)
 
Hi Jon, Welcome to the club. I haven't had a chance to catch up on all the recent posts in the forum, so forgive if I am repeating something here. This site really helped me before and after my surgery. Feel free to share at any time. And remember asking for advice is just as important as giving it. Good luck with the recovery.
 
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