new to this

[Darlened]

I need some help. I am very new and just recieved my date for surgery which is Apr.6. I will be having Mitral valve repair. Has anyone had experience at Sequoia Hosp in Redwood city Ca? I will be having Dr Guadiani. Anyone had experience with him???? I just found this web site and thankful for that. Thanks so much. Darlene

 

[Christina L]

First off -

First off -

welcome to this great site where you will find lots of support and positivity.

I checked into having Dr. Guadiani do my surgery. I even spoke with Dr. G on the phone. He is quite the confident, nice guy.

However, my cardiologist here in Colorado really wanted me to go to Cleveland to have Dr. Cosgrove do my surgery - they send all their more complicated mitral valve repairs there. So, I took my cardio's advice. I had a successful repair and am now two years out from surgery and the repair is holding tight.

I am not sure if there is anyone here on the board who had Dr. G do their mitral valve repair. There may be one or two. I hope someone will respond to your post.

I've heard the whole facility at Sequoia and Dr. G are fantastic and you are going to be in great hands!!

Christina L

 

[Darlened]

Hi Christina

Hi Christina

thanks so much for replying to my first post. I am getting very aprehensive now that the operation is so near.

 

[ArleneT]

Darlene,

I just did a search and found at least one person who used Dr. Guadiani. There may be others, but check the post below. It's near the bottom of the page.

http://valvereplacement.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6051&highlight=Guadiani

I had a mitral valve repair about 5 weeks ago on 2/6 and feel wonderful now.

Good luck.

Arlene

 

[Karlynn]

The only thing I would say is check to make sure that he does a lot of repairs. You want someone with extensive repair experience.

Best wishes.

 

[Marguerite53]

Hi and welcome! It is very natural to get aprehensive. Most people here find that gathering the most information they can and getting answers to questions helps assuage that anxiety. But it's natural! You can always ask your physician for some help, too. Many people need medication to calm that anxiety. Don't be afraid to ask your physician for some guidance there. Nurses are generally very helpful if you ask.

There are lots of lists in the archives here. You can do a search with questions or look in the Resources section. We have lists of what to expect, what to bring to the hospital, what this and that test does or means.

Most of us have had (or will be having) replacements, but there are quite a few repair recipients here. If you start a new thread with repair in the title, you may get more specific responses.

And know that this is the place for support, opinion and direction. Ask away and someone will be along to help.

Best wishes.

Marguerite

 

[Praline]

Mitral valve repair

Mitral valve repair

I am not in your area so I don't know anything about your surgeon. But I had a mitral valve repair and also one bypass 7 weeks ago. I am 64 years old and feeling just fine. I started Cardiac Rehab this week.

 

[Darlened]

Praline, I can identify much with you. I am 67 and scheduled to have the valve repaired. I would like to ask you some questions. Could you e-mail me? I don't know the procedure for this. I gave my e-mail address when I signed on. thanks, Darlene and thanks for all the information I have been receiving on this thread. Much help

 

[Darlened]

Praline, thank you so much for your quick reply, also thanks to Christina,Arlene Karlyn and Marguerite you are such a help. But I still haven't found the resources where it tells me what to bring to the hosp etc. I am so new to this website that I havent figured out how to find things. I did look in the archives but didn' find what I wanted. thanks again to all of you it has been such a help to find this site.

 

[Marguerite53]

What to take to the hospital when going for surgery- A checklist
http://valvereplacement.com/forums/s...ad.php?t=13283

Sorry! There is the link for the hospital list. Otherwise, if you look up in the left and click on the little blue ValveReplacement.com Forums that takes you to the list of different forums. Scroll down to Reference Sources (not resource, sorry) and when you go into that, there is a very long compiled list of links to just about everything! happy reading!!

Marguerite

 

[Mary]

Darlene,
You won't need much in the hospital. I took a CD player (which I never used) and a cushie (trade name) neck pillow that I used constantly, and still do.
You will need to decide what you'll wear on the trip home. GeeBee recommended sweat pants or something that has an elastic band, a button up shirt, and footwear that will be comfortable if you're feet are swollen. I wore a pair of thongs.
Unlike others, I was able to shower the second day and get my hair washed. I had my husband bring me a lightweight, travel hair dryer and my own shampoo.
I used two nightgowns; one put on frontwards, the other put on backwards, so I didn't have to worry about exposed body parts. I had a housecoat from home with me, but it got lost and I didn't get it back for almost 6 weeks. That's why I believe less is more when it comes to taking items with you.

I hope this helps.
Mary

 

[paulk]

I need some help. I am very new and just recieved my date for surgery which is Apr.6. I will be having Mitral valve repair. Has anyone had experience at Sequoia Hosp in Redwood city Ca? I will be having Dr Guadiani. Anyone had experience with him???? I just found this web site and thankful for that. Thanks so much. Darlene

Darlene,

I found it helpful to ask just about everyone I knew if they had heard of the surgeons I was referred to. Friends, co-workers, other doctors, dentists, friends that knew nurses that worked in the hospital, etc. It seems there is good networking among nurses in a given area, and they are glad to offer their thoughts on surgeons. Start spreading the word that you want info on this surgeon and you may be surprised where you get answers from. You may want to get a 2nd cardiologists opinion and reference. It helped me to get 2 surgeon references and interview them both.

I brought far more stuff to the hospital than I really needed. Just didn't have the energy or focus to read, listen to music, or even watch tv. The most important thing for me was to have a loved one stay the first nite after surgery. Very comforting. A comfy robe was also handy, since I was easily chilled.

-Paul

 

[EVELYN]

Hi Darlene and WELCOME to a great place!!!

I'm Evelyn, whose husband, Tyce, had Aortic valve replacement almost 4 years ago. While we're on the East Coast and I certainly have no knowledge of Dr. G, I sure can identify with the "apprehension" you're feeling.

Know in your heart (no pun intended) that you are doing the right thing and that you'll get through it. The waiting is absolutely the worst part, but I can tell you, the closer you get, the more you just want to get it over with and on with your life. My husband was excellent preop, I was the wreck. You can ask any of the "oldies" here how bad I was.....however, we both got through it and now it seems like it happened eons ago.

You have come to the right place. This a a great site with loads of wonderful members. Don't be afraid to ask anything....and I mean ANYTHING!!! You'll always get knowledgeable feedback.

I would agree with Paul that you should ask everyone you know, especially those in the medical field, about your dr. and about any recommendations they might have. We especially asked our cardio and he gave us three names and told us he would use any of them for himself....you can't ask for much more than that. We consulted with one and liked him so much that we went with him after I heard how good he was from my girlfriend who does medical malpractice for self-insured hospitals. We have never looked back, and Tyce has never been better....thank God.

Please post often, especially as you get closer to surgery. Someone will always be here for you.

Evelyn

 

[Darlened]

HI paul and Shawna, sounds like you just finished the mitral valve repair which is what I am scheduled for. Did either of you have minimal invasive surgery? My cardiologist told me that is what I would have. I haven't met dr guadiani yet ,will meet him the day before surgery. from the information I have gleaned from this website I feel he is a great surgeon and my card- assured me that he does a lot of these repairs I am hoping that the min invas surg is less painful than regular. I guess that I am looking for reassurance. I am wondering how long the recovery is ? any information will be helpfull

 

[paulk]

HI paul and Shawna, sounds like you just finished the mitral valve repair which is what I am scheduled for. Did either of you have minimal invasive surgery? My cardiologist told me that is what I would have. I haven't met dr guadiani yet ,will meet him the day before surgery. from the information I have gleaned from this website I feel he is a great surgeon and my card- assured me that he does a lot of these repairs I am hoping that the min invas surg is less painful than regular. I guess that I am looking for reassurance. I am wondering how long the recovery is ? any information will be helpfull

Darlene,

My MV repair was done the old-fashioned way, full sternectomy. I met with 2 different surgeons, and well, thats just the way they do it. There are surgeons in the area that do min. invasive, but they were not in my health plan. My understanding is there are pros and cons to both types of surgery, neither one being essentially better than the other. I was told by my surgeon that recovery time is similar, a few weeks before going back to work and up to a year before getting back to full fitness. In any case, I would highly recommend setting up an appointment with your surgeon well before surgery, so you can assess your comfort level with him. I felt soooooo much better after interviewing 2 different surgeons and picking one based on our meeting and other references. Bring a list of questions along (I recall seeing some threads that discuss surgeon questions).

-Paul