Leaking Aortic Valve

[ChevyDiesel]

At age 37 I had an echocardiogram everything was fine, I'm now 63 years old after another echocardiogram my doctor informed me I have a leaky aortic valve, he told me he wants to monitor it yearly.

I would like to tap the wealth of experience from the people on this forum and ask this question. Is there anything that I can do (diet, exercise, vitamins, etc.) that may heal this valve or at least slow down the inevitable?

 

[knotguilty]

It all depends on how severe your problem becomes as to weather you will need surgery at all. There are no guarantees in life but I believe in stacking the deck in my favor with exercise and trying to eat right. If you ever do need sergury, you will be glad you did. But check with your doctor before starting any exercise routine and work within those limits and guldlines. Hope it all works out.

 

[dick0236]

......my doctor informed me I have a leaky aortic valve, he told me he wants to monitor it yearly.

.......Is there anything that I can do (diet, exercise, vitamins, etc.) that may heal this valve or at least slow down the inevitable?

Welcome to the forum. Since your doc only "wants to monitory it yearly", you may never need surgery. If you have a bicuspid valve from birth or a valve that is damaged by stenosis, it probably will not heal itself. Ask your doc what he thinks caused the leakag. Diet, exercise, vitamins, etc may help to slow down any further degrading of the valve. Bad personal habits....smoking, overweight, sedentary life style, etc., etc. all put unnecessary strain on your heart. Poor dental health can cause infections that damage heart valves. Hopefully, you will NOT need surgery....but if you ever do, remember it is very doable.

 

[Superbob]

Welcome to the forum. Since your doc only "wants to monitory it yearly", you may never need surgery. If you have a bicuspid valve from birth or a valve that is damaged by stenosis, it probably will not heal itself. Ask your doc what he thinks caused the leakag. Diet, exercise, vitamins, etc may help to slow down any further degrading of the valve. Bad personal habits....smoking, overweight, sedentary life style, etc., etc. all put unnecessary strain on your heart. Poor dental health can cause infections that damage heart valves. Hopefully, you will NOT need surgery....but if you ever do, remember it is very doable.

Dick has said it all very well. I was monitored from my 20s, when an internist detected a heart murmur and suspected a congenitally leaky valve (bicuspid), until I was 63 by which time my valve gradually had become very leaky and I finally had to have a valve and root replacement. Monitoring it yearly is a good thing. In the year before my surgery, I was being monitored every 3 months or so. As Dick indicated, annual monitoring can occur over a long period of time and it is possible you might never need surgery. But if you do, it is indeed very "doable." All best to you….

PS: As far as "healing it" with diet and exercise etc, I've never read anything indicating that is possible. However, a healthy lifestyle certainly makes you better prepared to deal with replacement, and might even push back the time for surgery somewhat.

 

[mbeard]

Thank you super bob

Thank you super bob

Thank you for retelling your life story about your heart experience . I need to hear these stories very much. As I sit here, with my granddaughter head in my lap, I want to make the very most of life.

Dick has said it all very well. I was monitored from my 20s, when an internist detected a heart murmur and suspected a congenitally leaky valve (bicuspid), until I was 63 by which time my valve gradually had become very leaky and I finally had to have a valve and root replacement. Monitoring it yearly is a good thing. In the year before my surgery, I was being monitored every 3 months or so. As Dick indicated, annual monitoring can occur over a long period of time and it is possible you might never need surgery. But if you do, it is indeed very "doable." All best to you….

PS: As far as "healing it" with diet and exercise etc, I've never read anything indicating that is possible. However, a healthy lifestyle certainly makes you better prepared to deal with replacement, and might even push back the time for surgery somewhat.

 

[epstns]

I haven't heard of anything we can do to "heal" a heart valve. What we CAN do, however, is to live a lifestyle that enables our bodies to do as well as possible within the confines of our valve conditions. What I mean here is that by maintaining a healthy body weight, pursuing reasonable exercise and following a sensible diet, we can often maximize what our bodies can do to compensate for the shortcomings of our valves. In my case, I was diagnosed with aortic stenosis (a condition in which the aortic valve stiffens and cannot open fully) at age 52. By managing my weight, diet and exercise, I was able to live a great life all the way to age 63, when I finally had the valve replaced. If you do not have symptoms now, do all the "right" things, and it MAY delay the onset of symptoms. No guarantees, but what the heck, it is all we can do.

 

[AZ Don]

I believe that what you are describing as a leaky aortic valve is commonly known as aortic regurgitation or aortic insufficiency. What I took away from my recent online research into this is that other than keeping blood pressure under control (if it is high) and possibly avoiding very strenuous exercise, there is little that can be done other than to monitor it regularly. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aortic_insufficiency#Medical_treatment

FYI, following my recent surgery I now have mild aortic regurgitation.

 

[ChevyDiesel]

Welcome to the forum. Since your doc only "wants to monitory it yearly", you may never need surgery.

Your words are music to my ears, very encouraging, I was feeling depressed, discouraged, and stressed to the max. You've made me see the bright side...Thank you

 

[ChevyDiesel]

I failed to mention the reason my doctor ordered the echocardiogram, blood test, and a nuclear stress test is because I have an irregular heartbeat. His conclusion was not to worry about the heart skip, there was no blockages, my sugar was a little high at 106 (whatever that means), cholesterol was high at 230 I need to bring that down, my blood pressure was a little low (110 over something), and he wants to monitor the leaky valve yearly.

 

[carolinemc]

No diet, exercise, vitamins, or magic pills will stop this from happening. I was born with the heart murmur in the aortic valve, leaky valve. Some was removed when I had my first repair on the aortic valve at the age of eight in 1973. It got worse again years later, at age 38 and had the aortic valve replaced with St. Judes' leaflet valve. Am still living and the Murmur(the leak) could still come back. Monitoring the leak is great, it keeps things in check and lets you know of any changes. Best not to worry unless there is something to worry about. Most people have the leaky valve for many years, some have surgery, some have replacement. You just go with the monitoring. You can still lead an active life with this. Just keep us updated and welcome. Hugs for today.

 

[Eva]

At age 37 I had an echocardiogram everything was fine, I'm now 63 years old after another echocardiogram my doctor informed me I have a leaky aortic valve, he told me he wants to monitor it yearly.

I would like to tap the wealth of experience from the people on this forum and ask this question. Is there anything that I can do (diet, exercise, vitamins, etc.) that may heal this valve or at least slow down the inevitable?

Though the valve cannot heal on its own, yet you can delay the inevitable by:

1- Checking it yearly.
2- premedicate before dental work. Cleaning teeth without antibiotics will forward the bacteria from the teeth straight to the valve and worsens its condition! (Avoid using wooden toothpicks)
3- see your doctor when you suspect you're having a strep throat, or any other bacterial infection,
4- maintain healthy weight to avoid overworking the heart.
5- AVOID strenuous exercises, lifting or moving heavy object under no circumstances.
6- avoid adding extra salt to food as it'll retain fluids in the blood, which will add extra work on the heart
7- if you have high cholesterol, take statin

If your cardio didn't prescribe amoxicillin or other before dental work, you need to ask him.

Good luck, and as it was said earlier, you may not need the surgery!