Cleveland Clinic for graphs and a valve.

[Ikebi]

Hello to all,
This is my first posting on this forum and I hope that it will provide some enlightenment to the members that are about to take the plunge.

CC provides patients with a way of posting on the internet and it is called thestatus.com and is useful for patients family and friends to keep them updated without the phone calls and emails especially during the long process of heart surgery and recovery.

If members find this useful I will continue posting as I go through this and later as I proceed with recovery.

Here goes what I have posted so far on "The Status.Com"!

Presently staying at the Cleveland Clinic Guest House. If you have a discount card you get a rate of $116.00 per night from $119.00 per night. Not cheap, but located just across the street from the heart center.

Cleveland Clinic is absolutely HUGE and they have just completed a very large addition which I have been told will make life easier for heart patients to get too and through. Now it is a maze and they should give the patients a navigation system to help them get around as well as shuttle buses. I imagine for the heart patients that are very weak that it could be very stressful. Knowing that this is the best heart hospital in the country and has been for the last ten years makes the trip to Cleveland worth it. Security is great and they have their very own police department.

September 23**Tuesday was filled with many tests and lasted until 3:45PM they included echo cardiogram, blood drawn, urine sample, X-ray, CT Scan, echo of neck, chest and legs for vein mapping.

September 24 ?10:30 appointment however did not get going until 11:50 and ended by 2:05 with a good long walk to meet the doctor. No *tests however I was treated to a video and many interviews and I met my anesthesiologist very young and I bet very smart. Then at 1:00PM, my actual appointment however due to the delays at the interview I didn't meet with Dr. Mihaljevic until 3:45. I did have a sizable wait to see the doctor which he apologized profusely for. He met me with a very nice broad smile to discuss what he is going to do and what kind of valve he is going to put in. The thought is to put in a Bovine valve that should last between 10 and 15 years. I said that it sound about right because the light at the end of the tunnel is getting brighter. He also is going to make a special cut on one of my heart veins to hopefully stop the possibility of Atrial Fibs. They suck and make you feel like crap so I hope it works. He gave me encouragement by saying that I had a strong heart and that he had done a number of repairs before. Net result is a new valve and one graph.

Then to admission for more paper work and finally arrived back at the barn by 4:40PM which was a long day for me. I found that the testing went far smoother than with with interviews.

September 25 ?Breakfast and sitting around most of the day.
I have most often a deep inside headache not hard just one in the background. Very similar to when they put you on Nitro if anyone knows what that is like. On top of all that I'm constantly tired and have very little desire to do anything that is why I am in really looking forward to getting this done. I don't know why, but I do not have any fear of this and feel very calm. Maybe it's the lack of blood flow to the brain. I know what to expect and I know that it will be very painful because I have been down this road before, but I have had pain before and it won't last forever, The benefit of this out weights the alternative and I am looking forward to a few more years of good fun life.

Note: The doctor said that most valve patients complain of these symptoms.

Today I will get the call from the CC and they will let me know if I will be round A or round B. If it's round A I will have to get out of bed very early and be in admission by 5:00 then off to building P-20 then I imagine a room will be assigned until surgery. I have to gargle with Listerine tonight and bath with antiseptic soap and when I awake I will have to do the same thing all over again.

September 26 *Friday -- The BIG DAY after this day I am guessing.

September 27* Saturday ? Usually in ICU for 24 hours maybe off by early afternoon.* Get my butt up with feet dangling off the bed. Should be going to step down nursing level.
September 28 Sunday -- They get me up and make me stand and walk as far as possible.

September 29 Monday ? Work and more up and walking.

September*30 Tuesday -- Step down nursing level.* Walking in circles with a nurse hanging onto me.

October 1 Wednesday -- IValve patients are a little slower and I may still be working to get my butt in gear.

October 2 Thursday -- Still in possibly!

October 3 Friday I should be home by now or going home.*

Ike

*

 

[Ross]

In the ideal recovery, yes it should go like that, but don't be all disappointed if your recovery isn't text book. Most aren't. You already know that your at the best possible place to be for your heart, so let them take care of you CCF style.

Welcome to the forums!

P.S. there is a a young lung doctor, Peter Mazzone running around up there. I was one of his patients after my ruptured aneurysm was fixed. Doubt he'd remember me, but he should, he wasn't a Doctor then, just a fellow resident and I took up a great deal of his time. The man couldn't start an IV if his life depended on it then. Wondering if he can now?

 

[Bina]

Hello Ike and welcome. I like the idea of Status.com, that is clever and convenient.
I guess you are feeling the calm of having everything in place. I look forward to your postings.
Best wishes.

 

[skeptic49]

Welcome to VR and thanks for the informative posting.

Very best wishes for your upcoming procedure and a smooth recovery! We'll be awaiting updates.

Jim

 

[Ikebi]

Thank you all for the warm reception to the forum. It was here that I did all my research on pre-op and post surgery as well as valves and I owe the contributors of these articles a big Thank You for taking the time to post.

I am under no illusions about what will be happening to me. I had a by-pass thirteen years a ago and that means I am thirteen years older and it will probably be a tougher road to hoe. I always equated it to being in a train wreck. In any case waiting for the last dog to be hung could be this old dog being hung and my surgeon in Erie, Pa encouraged me to get it done while I still had some get up and go in me before it got up and went.

As a note to those that are contemplating coming to Cleveland for their procedure be aware that by next month they will have the new set up running and getting around should be much easier. Although I have been here alone the entire time without any assistance. It has been a breeze although the walks have been long at times dealing with these wonderful people here have made the long walks bearable. It has made my experience at CC great considering the circumstances.

 

[Ross]

I learned one thing from there. If your schedule has you somewhere at lunch time, go eat first, then go to the appointment. I made the mistake of hussling to the appointment all to find they were backed up by an hour and lost my opportunity to eat. I didn't get out of there until 6 in the evening and by then, I was beyond starved.

 

[Ikebi]

Your absolutely right! The waits can be long and the food scarce and my suggestion is to take some treats to help you through the day and with everything mostly in the new building you won't have to lug it too far. In retrospect I wish that I had taken my backpack I believe that it would have made life a lot easier traveling around the campus area and I could have most all things that I didn't want to carry at the time with me.

Received the big news a few minutes ago that I am to report for surgery at 5:15AM Friday the 26th. There was some doubt that I would have made it in due to the high volume of surgeries that plugged up ICU. I guess the traffic jam is over now and I am on for tomorrow.

Scheduling can be a problem here as I have found out and I felt that I was out in left field when they said that ICU was full and I may have to wait until Monday. It was a consideration that I had not thought of. I called and asked if they could be a little more firmer on the schedule but to no avail. I then began to consider heading back home and then coming back on Sunday to be scheduled on Monday. Spooky!

 

[Lionheart]

Hey Ike,

Good luck tomorrow, you already have skill and talent on your side.

I was there in March and have two recommendations for you.
1. In the step down unit your taste buds may be shot but it is important to eat something, so have someone get you a sandwich or some other comfort food from the Subway or cafeteria. A turkey and ham sub was my choice and I never ate anything that tasted so good.

2. Once you start walking in the step down unit find out where the nurse's break room is located on your floor. Set a goal of trying to walk there. Now, if you wake up late at night and can't go back to sleep, take a walk to that room and you will find a refrigerator with little containers of milk and ice cream. Help yourself and make a milkshake! They sure helped me get back to sleep with a full belly.

Take care,
John

 

[Phyllis]

Welcome, Ike and thanks for the great post. I know it will help many in the waiting room and especially those going to Cleveland. I put you on the calendar and will start a Best Wishes Thread for you right now- you can't get away without a
Best Wishes" thread here!

 

[thenewmarket]

Cleveland Clinic is a city within a city! My husband was there one year ago and reading your posts brings the reality back for me. You are in great hands and I wish you a successful surgery and an easy recovery!

 

[Bina]

I bet that CC is ten times the size of the hospital where I had my surgery, but I still went with snacks in my purse and a wheelchair.
Best wishes continuing.

 

[ponytaila1a]

Thanks for all the CC info. Prayers for tomorrow and beyond.

 

[ALCapshaw2]

Best wishes for your surgery tomorrow Ike!

I'm sure your detailed description of your pre-surgery schedule at the Cleveland Clinic will be of interest to other newcomers, especially those going to CC.

BTW, the technical term is GRAFT (not graph), similar to what is done with plants in Horticulture. A graph is a diagram showing the relation of one or more dependent variables to an independent variable (sorry for the mathematical definition).

 

[Ikebi]

This will be my last posting that I will do personally, however I will ask my sons to continue to update until I am able to once again post on my own.

Thank you for the correct spelling all I can say is thank God for spell check or I would be even more in a world of hurt when it comes to spelling.

Thank you all for your support and best wishes it makes the trip much easier.

 

[ctyguy]

Welcome Ike...

I had my procedure at C.C. 7 months ago and I have nothing but good things to say about the place. You will be going to a ICU unit that is designed specifically for heart patients after surgery. I also had my procedure on a Friday so I suspect there is a good chance you will have the very same nurses I did. I don't remember any names (I was kinda buzzed) but I do remember the care I recieved and if you get the same staff I did your in very good hands. The primary nurse I had was all of 24 but being a nurse is truely her calling. Everybody in the ICU was just exceptional. My first 12 hours in the step-down on Saturday night was kinda rough because they reduced my meds and that didn't go particularly well. I will suggest that if you get the choice between pills and the push-button drip meds, take the pills. Once they switched me over everything was smooth sailing.

I also used the website to post a status of my surgery, what a great tool they provided. I had my wife upload a few pictures as well.

You didn't mention your age but I'm guessing your a bit older. Im now 43 but my roommate was 77. He had his procedure the day before me and besides a valve replacement he had 3 bypasses and a small hole in his heart repaired. His surgery was on Thursday and he walked out of the place the following Wednesday. My surgeon told me his oldest patient for a valve replacement was 89 years old. THAT blew me away.

Its great to hear your calmn and got it together. For whatever reason the night before my surgery I was completely calm, same thing when I got there for surgery. I knew it needed to be done, I trusted my surgeon, and I knew statistically that my chances for a full recovery were very high. You know what your up against and now that you found this website you also have a whole host of people that will be pulling for you and looking forward to your next post.

Best of luck !

 

[Dawn-Marie]

Hi Ike ~ Sorry i'm late, but i wanted to extend a warm welcome to you. I'm live in Jamestown, NY too!! I'm glad you got to go to Cleveland Clinic and i wish you good luck on Friday with your surgery. My doctor in Erie (Dr. Strzalka) wanted me to go to Cleveland for The Partner Study where they would have used a transcatheter valve, but i didn't qualify for the study, so i guess nothing is going to help me now. Dr. Strzalka was going to look into other options for me, but i've been having another serious health problem which probably will require me to have surgery, so i've called and e-mailed him since Tuesday (when he was in the office) and he's not even replying, so i guess he's done with me. The problem is he had said previously that my heart valve is so bad that i can't have any other surgery until my valve is fixed. I'm really in a mess now.

Looking forward to hearing how you did with your surgery.

My best wishes and prayers will be with you today, Dawn-Marie