Yes, actually, I have had quite a few phone discussions with John both before and after his surgeries and his terrible ordeal. And yes, CryoLife did voluntarily pull the SG valves from the market about four months after I received mine, after which I had a little email discussion with my surgeon, who continued to support this valve in hopes that it would come back on the market.
The FDA was concerned because the valves were not sterilized, BUT, one cannot sterilize human tissue in the traditional sense without compromising its integrity. So the problem was that, in a few cases, none (that I am aware) of which were valves (it was knee cartilage, etc), a fungus of some sort was transfered from the donor to the recipient, resulting in bad news. So CryoLife pulled everything off the shelves. Keep in mind that CryoLife continues to be one of the leading providers of biomaterials for tissue implantation, not just for the SG valves but also for traditional non-SG valves and a host of other materials.
And with John, it's not for me to say, but I agree with John (Lionheart) here, everyone is different. His overall experience with heart valve surgery was not very positive from the start, and whether he got a bum valve or whether there were other factors in his situation that came into play, or perhaps a combination of both, leaves all of us a bit nervous.
So, certainly, thank you for the concerns here, and anyone considering the SG should certainly have a few questions to ask their surgeons. But I do hope we don't throw the baby out with the bathwater. Personally, I thank God for my SG, and if I ever need one again, I sure hope they are available!
