borderline MVP & trace/mild leakiness at aortic valve

[3kidsincollege]

Hello,

I need help and advise.

I am a 51 year old female and have had MVP all my life with little or no symptoms. Over the past several years I have been getting very short of breath, practically non existant excersice tolerance, lightheadedness and palpitations. When I lay in bed it feels like my heart is going to beat out of my chest. I have trouble catching my breath for no apparent reason. After an echocardiogram, my doctor only saw trace-mild leakiness at the aortic valve and borderline MVP. She said that the MVP was probably not causing my symptoms and that no surgeon would look at me with the degree of leakiness that I had. She is calling my problem panic attacks and put me on zoloft. Besides sleeping better, it's not doing anything.
Am I crazy? Can a very mild case of MVP/leakiness cause these symptoms? When the symptoms first started and I suspected it was my MVP finally catching up with me and I decided that I didn't want any surgery. Now I am desperate. I can't walk up a flight of stairs. How can I get a surgeon and or cardiologist to further evaluate me? I would ofcourse prefer valve repair to valve replacement, but right about now I would settle for anything. I would need a referral because I am in an HMO but my doctor thinks I'm crazy.

Thank you in advance for any advice

Mary

 

[Phyllis]

Dear Mary,
I see that you are in Boston- you couldn't do better than an evaluation from Brigham and Women's Hospital. We used Dr. O'Gara, head cardiologist, for the first evaluation and we use Dr. Lawrence Cohn for the surgery. If your HMO allows referrals to Brigham, go for it!

 

[tobagotwo]

While what was reported would not likely cause those symptoms, that doesn't mean you don't have a real problem that has been overlooked,. Sounds like your doctor quit on you in mid-diagnosis.

Panic attacks, indeed. The symptoms you described deserve a closer look, consideration from different perspectives, and investigation of a wider range of possible causes. They should not have stopped looking so fast.

I agree that you need a second opinion - especially to look at other things, such as potential coronary artery blockages or narrowing. Unless the echo was entirely incompetent, the doctor was probably correct that the valves themselves are likely not the focus of the issue.

Brigham and Womens is great. Mass General, also excellent.

Best wishes,

 

[PJmomrunner]

Yep, like Bob said, a closer look is surely in order. You talk about your "doctor." Is this doctor a cardiologist? (I'm guessing no by the Zoloft scrip.) So has the echo been read by a cardiologist?

 

[Mb]

Hello:

We are from the western part of Massachusetts. My husband has his surgery at Mass General, Dr. Gus vlahakis. His cardiologist is Dr. Charles Boucher. Office is behind Mass General. If it were me, I would call and get another opinion. - Marybeth