Greetings

[BECKY]

Hi,

My name is Becky. I am trying to find a place to put my message. I am feeling my way around this site, and this where I landed. I am glad I found this site.

I have an aortic & mitral valve replacement. I had the surgery done in July 1984. I have had some problems over the years. The symptoms have been more frequent (in the last year) and after an echo stress test in June we are discussing a second surgery. I was 34 yrs old when I had the first surgery and I bounced back pretty easily. Now they are discussing replacing my tricuspid valve along with possibly both mechanical valves. I am more than a little nervous at the prospect. I also have been told I now have Pulmonary Hypertension. They can't guarantee I'll feel 100% better after the surgery at this point. They will know better after I have a cardiac catherization to see how much of my symptoms are PH and how much are faulty valves. The risk for a second surgery is there as well as additional risk for a multi procedure. I have not read about my particlular problems on this site yet. If anyone has any similar problems I would love to hear about it.
I will be leaving for vacation on Saturday for a week. On the 29th of July I am scheduled for a TEE. A catherization has not been scheduled yet, but I will be meeting with the surgeon, with my husband, on August 7th. I am going one step at a time and want to put this off as long as I can if possible.
I have enjoyed reading about everyone's experiences, and I don't feel all alone now. I saw today one girl that was having surgery today at the Mayo Clinic. I hope everything went well for her. I am happy I found this site.
BECKY

 

[Ross]

Welcome to VR family Becky.

I think you already know that your in the right place.
What we need to do is have Hank either move this thread to the Heart Talk forum, so that you can get some answers to your questions. I'm sure someone will stop in here too, but it's a little faster in the right forum. Don't be upset about placing this were it is. You'll get used to using the board in no time and everyone here has been in or is about to be in the same circumstances as yourself. There is allot of experience and wisdom here. More then I've seen anywhere else.

 

[Christina]

Welcome Becky!

Welcome Becky!

Hi Becky,

I am glad you found us! You've certainly come to the right place. There is a wealth of information here and people are super friendly and extremely supportive. You will NEVER feel alone anymore.
I had two AVR's in August 2000 and am feeling good!
I was 53 at the time. I have a St.Jude's mechanical and am on Coumadin. No problems so far!
I haven't gone through the same problems you are describing, but maybe someone will come along to talk to you about that.
It is understandable that you are nervous, but like you said, just take it one step at a time. The more educated you become the easier it will be.
In the mean time we will hold your hand and give you the support you need until you are over this big hurdle again. We call it the mountain, and many before you have gone there and over to the other side.

Hope this will help you!

Christina
AVR's 8/7/00 & 8/18/00
TMC, Tucson. AZ
Dr. Gulshan Sethi

"Be thankful for every heart that touches you and grateful for every heart you can touch".

 

[Mb]

WOW! Am I glad you posted!

My hysband had aortic and mitral mechanicl valves installed in October of last year. His recovery has not been as smooth as we had hoped. The first surgeon we had seen had warned us that he might not recover completely.

We have the surgical report. At that time his tricuspid valve had a slight leak. In April, he had his six month echo, and he was diagnosed with a severely leaking tricuspid valve, but with no signs of PH. He had a follow up echo this past Tuesday, and we see his Boston cardio this coming week. When we had seen his Boston cardio three months ago he had told us that my husband needed a pacemaker to control the HR that is not controlled by the beta blocker. I had asked him what "surprises" might be in store for us, post pacemaker, and he mentioned that his tricuspid valve might need repair or replacement in the future. So, this appointment on Tuesday means a lot to us, as his people did the echo this time, and we have much more confidence in this cardio.

I would be very very interested in hearing more about your experiences since your first surgery, as we seem to have an "event" of some sort every three to four weeks. It is quite the journey. Could you e-mail me at [email protected] so we could chat?

Thank you SO much for posting. I think there is one other person on this board with three mechanicals, and I am certain she will post to you soon.

Again, thanks!

Marybeth

 

[Nancy]

Hi Becky-

Just want to welcome you to this fantastic valve site. You'll get answers to just about any valve question you might have and the beauty of it is that they'll be honest and forthright answers from the people who've been there-done that, and the people who've watched it from the bedside. There is a world full of knowlege here and you can glean much info. from the experiences all have had with different facilities and different doctors. It will give you a Master's Degree in valves from the patient's point of view.

My husband hasn't had multiple heart surgeries all at once, but he has had 3 valve surgeries. He has mechanical aortic and mitral and had a repair on his mitral, plus he has a pacemaker. Prior to his last surgery, the TEE showed a leak in the tricuspid valve, but it didn't require surgery. He has chronic afib, CHF and pulmonary hypertension. He's also had some other very serious medical problems. He's 71 years old, and is still plugging away, fighting each battle as it comes. The body has amazing healing properties and can withstand some pretty terrible things.

You'll probably get lots of replies to your post. There are all kinds of heart and valve conditions here. One member even has five valves. She had to have one made up to go outside her heart to augment its function.

We live in a miracle age when many things can be done to help the mechanical functions of the heart. The patients here are testimonials to this world of science.

Hope to see you here often as you go along on the journey.

 

[ILoVeNY25]

Welcome

Welcome

Welcome Becky to this wonderful site. You'll find lots of info here. I myself had both my aortic and mitral replaced with St. Judes and I had my tricuspid repaired. I understand your concerns as we all do. You have the right attitude, Take it one step at a time. See what the cath says and just go from there. The best of luck to you and please keep us informed.