Hi Everyone!!

[Smedders]

My first post on here - please be nice . .

I'm 8 weeks post-surgery (St Jude aortic valve and aortic plication) and feeling pretty good and I have a question for you all.

I was thinking of getting some 'dog tags' made so that if I'm in an accident the emergency services will know what to do.

So the stuff that needs to go on there, I guess, is:

Anti-coagulated with warfarin (do I need to mention the valve?)
INR range
Anti-biotic prophylaxis required
(and also that I'm allergic to penicillin)

I don't really know the best way to get all this onto a bit of jewellery (decided on dog tags as I'm not really a 'jewellery' person - don't even wear a watch), and also it would be nice to find out about any reputable companies that make such things.

I've used the search function but haven't found anything that quite tells me what I need to know so would be grateful if I could avail myself of your collective wisdom.

Thanks a lot,
Smedders

 

[cherbam]

Welcome

Welcome

Hi Smedders,

You will find a lot of info here. You can use the search engine and put in medic alert bracelets and you'll get some hits. I wear a small bracelet with a charm that reads: HEART PATIENT
3 VALVES REPLACED
WARFARIN
I also have a back-up charm in case I lose this one. Good Luck, Cheryl

 

[Mary]

My first post on here - please be nice . .

I'm 8 weeks post-surgery (St Jude aortic valve and aortic plication) and feeling pretty good and I have a question for you all.

I was thinking of getting some 'dog tags' made so that if I'm in an accident the emergency services will know what to do.

So the stuff that needs to go on there, I guess, is:

Anti-coagulated with warfarin (do I need to mention the valve?)
INR range
Anti-biotic prophylaxis required
(and also that I'm allergic to penicillin)

I don't really know the best way to get all this onto a bit of jewellery (decided on dog tags as I'm not really a 'jewellery' person - don't even wear a watch), and also it would be nice to find out about any reputable companies that make such things.

I've used the search function but haven't found anything that quite tells me what I need to know so would be grateful if I could avail myself of your collective wisdom.

Thanks a lot,
Smedders

Hi, Smedders!
I don't have wear anything, but I've provided the link to a thread that talks about what you might want to try. Since you're in Great Britain, I don't know how much will be applicable, but you may find something.
http://www.valvereplacement.com/forums/showthread.php?t=25007&highlight=medic+alert+bracelet

 

[WayneGM]

Welcome to VR. Glad you found us. I don't use a medic alert braclet as I had a repair and don't take comadin don't have any advice about the jewelry.

 

[dcat96]

I also just had AVR surgery 6 weeks ago, I just got a sports braclet that is more like a band- mine says name, heart patient, med:warfarin, mechanical valve, Date of birth. That is the info suggested to me at hospital. Welcome to site and glad you are well since your surgery
Dana

 

[lisou]

Hi Smedders

Welcome to VR.com, check www.medicalert.com it's a worldwide organisation and you can get all kinds of necklace and bracelet and when you fill out for one of those you have to fill out what kind of med your taking, serial and model # of valve etc...It only took a week to get it.

Good Luck

 

[Lisa in Katy]

Welcome!

I have a bracelet that has the medical symbol on one side (Caduceus?) and the word Coumadin on the opposite side. I work in healthcare and have been told by doctors and nurses that this would trigger the correct response from any healthcare personnel as bleeding after an accident is the main reason for wearing the id. I hope that they would recognize the fact that I have a mechanical valve when they put a stethoscope on my chest. If not, I probably wouldn't want them doing anything anyway.

I also carry my wallet card that has all the details about my valve. If I am unconscious and they hear my valve, I'm sure they would feel free to go into my wallet and look.

 

[Illinois Al]

Hi Smedders
Welcome to VR.com, check www.medicalert.com it's a worldwide organisation and you can get all kinds of necklace and bracelet and when you fill out for one of those you have to fill out what kind of med your taking, serial and model # of valve etc...It only took a week to get it.
Good Luck

As others have said before me, welcome to the forum.

I am another Medic Alert user. You can get "dog tags" from them as well as bracelets and even now a watch with the information engraved on the back of the watch. The engraving will state the most pertintent conditions. They also provide a wallet card with a little more information.

The biggest advantage of going with Medic Alert (as opposed to just buying an emblem or engraving your own) is that they provide on the emblems and wallet card an 800 number to call along with your subscriber number, and you can upload much more detailed information about your conditions and medications, emergency contacts including doctors and family members. All of this information would be available to an emergency care provider if they called.

The disadvantage is that you pay a yearly fee for the service as opposed to a one-time cost of buying an emblem without such a service or engraving your own.

I also have/carry a plastic ID card provided by St. Jude with information about my valve.

It would be a personal decision whether you wanted to pay for the service, but I thought it was well worth it. Actually I have had a Medic Alert bracelet since 1997 when I was I diagnosed with diabetes, I just updated my online data with information about my heart valve and then they sent me an updated wallet card.

 

[Cooker]

Welcome to the zoo ... mine has my name, valve type and position and "on Coumadin". I think that about says it for me.

 

[Freddie]

Hi there Smedders and Welcome, I don't think its necessary to put your INR range on.
On mine it reads; Mitral Valve, Anticoagulated, Allergic to Bandaids and Tapes.

So yes, do mention your valve. You mayalso may have to watch or take note of your lettering.....you/they may run out of space. I got a phone call regarding this but we found a happy medium to solve the lettering problem.

 

[Freddie]

This is the necklace I have

 

[Superbob]

Welcome!

I've started wearing a medic alart necklace, as much for my diabetes as my heart history. (Have gotten low blood sugar a few times out on a long walk, and that's pretty scary.) I am not on coumadin but I list my other meds on the dogtag (it's pretty amazing how much info you can get on it.)

Good luck! Glad to have you with us.

 

[zipper2]

Hi want to welcome you and i have medic alert
bracelet,that will need updating after my 2nd
surgery,so likely need to reorder a new one
when i complete this adventure.

zipper2 (DEB)

 

[netmiff]

I have a bracelet that looks like one of those bands for sporty watches, it velcros closed, so fits just about anyone - I actually think mine is a child's one. The oval disk says MEDIC ALERT and has the caduceus on the front, and on the back is a telephone number to call collect for further information, prosthetic aortic valve, anticoagulated, allergic to sulfa and then my membership number. I thought it was worth the annual fee for medical personnel to have access to all my data, and I can change it on-line whenever I want.

One thing, the band that I have gets wet in the shower, and I have to take it off every morning and put it on again. A pain, and if I had to do it over again, I may have chosen a different style.

Couple of more hi-tech ideas . . . .

http://ukirelandtravel.suite101.com/article.cfm/portable_patient_records_with_usb

http://www.med-flash.com/

 

[Smedders]

Thanks all for your responses - sure I'll be able to find something suitable amongst these leads.