nearyneary
Active member
Hello--
I never post here because my mitral valve repair has been more or less stable for 10 years... and now it's not. My cardiologist thinks I need a replacement in the next 6 months. The rather fortuitous news in my life is that I just got a new job in Cleveland, and am moving there next month. I already have an appointment with a cardiologist at the Cleveland Clinic in April, but I was wondering if anyone on this board has actually had a mitral valve re-repaired successfully. It seems like there are very few surgeons that will even try this, but Dr. Gillinov at the Cleveland Clinic is one, and I think there is another doctor at Mt. Sinai in NYC who does re-repairs also.
I'm a pretty skeptical about re-repairs, since my first repair didn't work that well (I still had moderate regurgitation when they stitched me up in the OR!). I was told in 2005, right after my first surgery, that I would need a second surgery in 1 to 4 years. So I'm amazed that it's lasted 10 years.
If I don't get a re-repair, I would probably get a mechanical valve, since I'm 39 and hoping to live a few more decades! But I am also concerned about bleeding complications with other procedures. I'm trying to have children through IVF and surrogacy, and the prospect of having IVF on coumadin scares me, not to mention other procedures or surgeries I might need in the future. So a re-repair that actually works would be ideal. If anyone has experiences with mitral re-repairs (good or bad), I would love to hear your story. Thanks!
I never post here because my mitral valve repair has been more or less stable for 10 years... and now it's not. My cardiologist thinks I need a replacement in the next 6 months. The rather fortuitous news in my life is that I just got a new job in Cleveland, and am moving there next month. I already have an appointment with a cardiologist at the Cleveland Clinic in April, but I was wondering if anyone on this board has actually had a mitral valve re-repaired successfully. It seems like there are very few surgeons that will even try this, but Dr. Gillinov at the Cleveland Clinic is one, and I think there is another doctor at Mt. Sinai in NYC who does re-repairs also.
I'm a pretty skeptical about re-repairs, since my first repair didn't work that well (I still had moderate regurgitation when they stitched me up in the OR!). I was told in 2005, right after my first surgery, that I would need a second surgery in 1 to 4 years. So I'm amazed that it's lasted 10 years.
If I don't get a re-repair, I would probably get a mechanical valve, since I'm 39 and hoping to live a few more decades! But I am also concerned about bleeding complications with other procedures. I'm trying to have children through IVF and surrogacy, and the prospect of having IVF on coumadin scares me, not to mention other procedures or surgeries I might need in the future. So a re-repair that actually works would be ideal. If anyone has experiences with mitral re-repairs (good or bad), I would love to hear your story. Thanks!
