left atrial appendage

[jordan]

I had AVR surgery last Monday (12/19/11). Everything went smoothly. I was back home on Christmas day, so it wasn't too long of a stay in the hospital. The surgeon was waiting until he had opened to decide between the St. Jude and the Carbomedics. He ended up installing a Carbomedics. He found a atrial septum defect and closed that. He also removed my left atrial appendage.

Meeting with my surgeon earlier, he mentioned that he would excise the left atrial appendage. It wasn't something I had heard talked about before. Did anyone else have an ASD closure or excised LAA?

On a different topic, if On-X is the Mercedes-Benz of heart valves and the St. Jude is the Ford, since Carbomedics is made by Sorin (an Italian company) is it the Fiat of heart valves?

 

[Adrienne]

I had a type of ASD called a patent foramen ovale (there is a membrane that covers the hole, but blood can still pass). It was patched up during my surgery. I kind of like the idea of having the LAA excised. I wonder why they don't always do that. It is in that appendage that blood can clot when a person has A-Fib.

 

[Jkm7]

I also had a patent formen ovale closed. I never knew it was there before my surgery.

 

[Lily]

...On a different topic, if On-X is the Mercedes-Benz of heart valves and the St. Jude is the Ford, since Carbomedics is made by Sorin (an Italian company) is it the Fiat of heart valves?

Maybe a Lamborghini?

I've read of others being surprised by an ASD repair too. Did you do an advanced search about the LAA? I don't recall reading about that before.

Take care

 

[Lionheart]

On a different topic, if On-X is the Mercedes-Benz of heart valves and the St. Jude is the Ford, since Carbomedics is made by Sorin (an Italian company) is it the Fiat of heart valves?

Jordan,
Maybe it's the Ferrari of heart valves! A finely made machine by Italian craftsmen!

I see Lily is thinking along similar lines-great minds think alike.
Best,
John

 

[AgilityDog]

I had the LAA closed when they replaced my mitral valve and did the Maze procedure. I'd been in and out of afib, and had had a quick TIA, so closing the LAA was a good idea. It's kind of a back water where the blood can easily eddy and clot, so if the maze had not cured my afib issue, it would have been a good preventative measure against future clots/stroke.

 

[oceanspray]

I had a resection of the left atrial appendage during a mitral valve repair. Surgeon stated the reason was to minimize afib and future strokes. My research shows that nowadays, it appears to be a standard protocol anytime the heart is opened.

Oceanspray - 68 year-old physically active male, diagnosed with moderate mitral valve prolapse 1998, upgraded to severe prolapse 2010. Asymptomatic. Scheduled surgery June 2011 cancelled because of endocarditis (dental cleaning May 2011 even while taking amoxicillin). MV repair October 2011, with annuloplasty (Edwards Cosgrove), and resection of left atrial appendage. Dr. Stanley Tam, UMass Memorial.