New to the waiting room

[Jen]

Hi all,

I am new to the waiting room... I have a BAV that measures 1.1, and peak gradient of 56 and mean of 31. In November last year is was 1.3 and peak 48 mean 28, some minor changes... My "story" is.. I am 39, overweight (I know..) a triathlete - as of last year and have run a 1/2... I get short of breath because of my weight, but now it seems different.. I get "flutters/grabbing feeling" periodically, tired, periods of light headedness while jogging. I push thru thinking alot is my weight, on my last visit 2 months ago, my cardio tells me to try to lose some weight, and keep track of things, come back in 2 months, and if things are not better we will do a cath, with possible surgical consult. He said my valve is not "that bad", but in consideration of body size, yes it is.. He said no tri's this year. I have held back on my exercise to mild/moderate level so i don't really know if things are the same or different. I still get very out of breath at the top of stairs, etc...
I wish we could just replace it and move on so I can move on... Is that wrong?? and has anyone else been in this kind of boat?

Thanks !

 

[Marcia58]

Welcome, Jen! Just a suggestion... You might want to repost this in the BAV and/or Pre-Op forums. You'll probably get more response and info in one of those 2 spots.

Marcia

 

[Jen]

Ooops!! Thanks!!

 

[scott.eitman]

Welcome aboard.

As I posted earlier today, Take charge. I have numerous times. In 1998, my Cardio was telling me not to worry that he would know when the time was right. I knew the time was right and decided to get 2nd opinions. They all said, without prompting, that it was time. My life was much better after surgery.

I have to think that light headedness during a workout is not good. I also think it is not due to weight. Now I am making the assumption that your weight is not all that bad since your say a triathlete.

As for weight, I put on weight this year as part of trying to keep my energy level up. Not a good idea. 4 years ago, my primary yelled at me for my weight and I dropped 25 lbs without exercising. He said if it is not in the refrigerator, it is probably not good for you. I cut out a lot of things like fats, ice cream... It was an amazing experience.

Scott

 

[ALCapshaw2]

Welcome Aboard Jen !

Shortness of breath "at the the top of the stairs" may be exacerbated by weight, but is also a common indicator of 'heart issues'. I don't remember the 'trigger points' for gradients, but yours are definitely 'above normal'. Would it be possible to get a 'second opinion' from either another Cardiologist or an experienced Valve Surgeon (NOT some surgeon who does 95% ByPass Surgeries) in your area?

'AL Capshaw'

 

[Mentu]

Jen, welcome to VR. Listen to Al. Symptoms of heart valve problems are different for everyone. I started experiencing shortness of around the time my valve measured 1.25 cm2 and was told then by my cardiologist that surgery was still probably several years away. 10 months later, I had a new heart valve. Once the valve area drops and the pressures rise, Jen, they can change very fast and, to the best of my knowledge, they never improve. My own surgeon said that is the best time for valve replacement because the patient is still otherwise healthy. I second Al's suggestion that you get the opinion of a cardiac surgeon familiar with the issues associated with BAV who performs many valve replacements. It certainly cannot hurt to do so.

Larry