chris

[collingriffin]

I was just diagnosed with a bicuspid heart.
I am a 56 yr old man.
I am a veteran and they want me to have my aorta valvue replaced with a mechanical value.
I am willing to lissen to anyones experiences.
Thanks for your time.

 

[Randy'38]

Bicuspid valve

Bicuspid valve

Chris:

What is the condition of your valve? I never knew I had a bicuspid valve until I had my aortic valve replaced last July. I'd had a heart murmur first discovered in 1962, but nothing was done with it. This was before echocardigrams, so it couldn't be properly evaluated. In '93 the docs discovered moderate calcification on my valve through an echo. I lasted until March '04 when the calcification was considered severe enough to do a valve replacement. I was finally starting to have symptoms (fatigue, slow recovery after exercise, etc.). When they did the surgery, they discovered I had a bicuspid valve. I was given the choice of a mechanical valve or bovine pericardial valve. At my age (65), I was told the bovine should hold me for a long while (18+ years), so I opted for that. I didn't want the hassle of blood thinners for the rest of my life because of my active lifestyle. I'm glad I made that choice. But at your age, the mechanical valve is probably your best bet. You can find all kinds of good advice and experiences on this website. I'm so glad I discovered it before my surgery. It made the experience much easier. Good luck in your treatment.

Randy

 

[geebee]

Chris,
Welcome and we'll help you get through the scary first moments of hearing the term OHS.
As Randy said, your age is why the doctors want you to have a mechanical valve. If you get a biological valve at 56, the chances are you will need another one about the time you are in your early 70s, a tough age to recoup from OHS.
A mechanical valve will more than likely last your lifetime. You will come to see that there are never any guarantees but the chances are very much in your favor.
Life on coumadin is very easy - don't let the scary hype out there frighten you. Certainly those of us on coumadin would prefer not to be but we live great lives and are happy that coumadin keeps that happening.
Good luck and keep us posted on the surgery info.

 

[inlaguna]

Chris,


Take a deep breath and look at all your options. It is a very scary thing to deal with, but, as you can see here, there are many in the same boat.

There are many great past posts on mechanical vs tissue and age etc......The decision is not clear so do your research and do what is best for you.

dan

 

[epstns]

Hi Chris, and welcome to The Waiting Room -- the virtual room in which many of us await our valve surgeries.

I'm about the same age (I'm 57) and have known about my bicuspid valve for a couple of years. Depending upon the severity of your condition, they may press for surgery soon, or maybe later. I am on a "watch and wait" program, as I have no real symptoms other than fatigue more often than before.

Have they given you any specifics of your valve's condition? That might help us to explain what may or may not be going on. So far, my doc's have told me to "Just live your life. It isn't time yet." So I'm just being careful and aware and trying not to stress about it too much.

 

[charlie b]

Same Boat

Same Boat

Hi Chris, I am also 56 and need to have my aortic valve replaced. I had a cath. done yesterday 3/2/05. Looks like the surgery is in a couple of weeks, I am leaning toward a tissue valve. That seems to go against the odds, but right now it seems right to me. I meet with my surgeon again in 11 days, that may change my outlook. At this point he is suggesting the bovine valve. Keep in touch and let me know what you decide and why. Your input will be helpful to myself and others. Big decision for both of us, and to think that just a month ago I didn't know what an aortic valve was. God bless 2 Timothy 1/7 charlie b