chest pain after valve replacement

[lcwhitney]

18 courier new I had an aortic valve replacement, a pulmonary valve replacement and a pulmonary artery graft placed to repair a pulmonary artery anuerysm in August of 2001. I want someone to tell why I am still having chest pain. I never had chest pain until about three weeks after my surgery. I do not have a cardiologist near me. The only one here felt I was wasting his time when I first began to have symptoms and was sent to him by my family doctor. My family doctor has been unable to discover the origin of the pain I have. Is there anyone who has had a similar experience???

 

[sylviayasgur]

hi icwhitney!
welcome to this wonderful site. everyone here is so supportive and helpful.
although my husband joey did have pain in his chest after the surgery, i think it stemmed from his incision and from what they had done to his sternum.
chest pains don't sound right to me. i think that you might want to find a new cardiologist near you and have this checked
out.
maybe someone else here has been through a similar experience though and they will come along soon enough.
where in LA are you? my daughter is a freshman at tulane.
please let us know how you make out. good luck and be well, sylvia

 

[lcwhitney]

where I live in Louisiana

where I live in Louisiana

Dear Sylvia,

I live in a very small town called Downsville. I am about 30 miles from the Ark. border. What is your daughter studying at Tulane. That is an excellent school but, I hope she got a scholarship because I know it is also expensive.

Lettitia

 

[ALCapshaw]

Lettitia,

You didn't say what type of chest pain you are experiencing.

Muscular pain may be relieved with Physical Therapy and / or massage and / or proper exercise.

Bone pain from them sternum 'should' be gone by now unless there is some problem that needs to be investigated.

Chest pressure or non-bone / non-muscle pain may be related to your coronary arteries. Have you had a heart catheterization? or stress test?

You REALLY need to find a good cardiologist who will check you out. If you are having bone pain, call your surgeon and talk with his nurse or physician's assistant about your symptoms. From that discussion you will know if you need to see the surgeon again.

Good Luck,

'AL'

 

[RonP]

Chest Pain

Chest Pain

Chest pain is never a good indicator so, for peace of mind, get it checked out by a good cardiologist and then you'll know exactly where you stand.

In the meantime, we'll for sure keep you in our prayers.

RON P.

 

[Tom Harrison]

I had surgery for an aortic valve replacement and stem repair on a Wednesday and went home a week and a day later. The next day I woke up with recurring chest pain (I had had no chest pain or shortness of breath leading up to the surgery) I was going back to the hospital for INR blood work that morning anyway so went to emergency as the pain was continuing. They ran a series of tests and after a number of hours said the pain was related to the surgery and that I needed to increase the pain killers (T3's). An experienced doctor and a young intern saw me and said they were sure there was no cause for concern but would keep me in emerg until I was convinced as well. I went home feeling confident, increased the Tylenol and had no more problems. You need someone to test and reassure you as I was.
I am now eight months post op and feel good.

Best of luck
Tom Harrison

 

[Boogie]

I had aortic valve replacement at Lennox Hill in NYC in March '02 and still have lingering itchiness and incision "sensation" -- but very little if any pain on the left side of the chest at all.

Personally, I have a good (first-name) relationship with my cardiologist and know he cares, so if I have any pain or sensation on the left side of my chest, I don't hesitate. I'd rather him consider me a bit of a pain in the a** than supervise emergency follow-up surgery or, god forbid, worse.

Find a cardiologist who will spend time with/on you.