Successful valve replacement

[Joan P.]

My husband had his surgery today, with mitral and aortic valve replacement with bovine pericardial tissue valves. The mitral valve was typical for rheumatic fever. The aortic valve was not too stenosed, but had bileaflets, something we had not known beforehand.

There was a small glich. While still in the OR, the surgeon was not happy with the amount of blood drainage, so he reopened the chest to check the valve sutures. These were ok, thank goodness. It was decided that there was a clotting problem and he is being given blood product replacements. Evidently the heart-lung machine did some damage to the blood cells, which is not unusual, so we were told.

All in all, the surgery was a success. It has been quite an experience. The hospital personnel have been extraordinary. They have been with us every step of the way, keeping me informed every hour and discussing every aspect. The surgeon has our complete confidence.

The surgery was at Forsyth Medical Center, Winston-Salem, NC and the surgeon was Dr. Joel Morgan.

 

[nngbwh]

Great news.... Praying your husband will have a smooth recovery.

Thanks for the update.

 

[joanne6]

So glad things are going well.

 

[Missy]

YAY !!!! I am happy for you and hope that he has a speedy recovery.

 

[ARGreenMN]

The next couple days will probably be rough, but after that hopefully he'll start feeling better every day as he begins the recovery. Here's to a trouble-free recover, and welcome him to the other side for us! And bring him some cookies - rumor is you're supposed to get cookies when you're on this side of the surgery, but those of us recently having surgery haven't seen any (maybe cost cutbacks or the new healthcare bill or something).

 

[Luana]

Good to hear, Joan. Wishing him a very smooth ride for the rest of the way.

 

[buncle]

Great news! Now you try to get some rest and relax alittle.

 

[heartman77]

You are both in my prayers Joan.....another brother in the fold of a new chapter of life...and hopefully a much healthier and enjoyable life for the both of you...God Bless....Mike

 

[heartman77]

Andy....my wife is know as the COOKIE LADY AND COOKIE GRAMA....and for being such a great guy on this site....if you give me your address, while she is home with me after my surgery...She said she will bake you a nice assortment and priority mail them to you. Just a small token of thanks for all your support here.......Mike

 

[pat45750]

Please wish your husband Good Luck with his recovery for me. I will keep him in my thoughts and prayers.

Pat

 

[Luckyguy17]

Joan,

Thank you for the update, wishing a speedy recovery. As Andy mentioned, previously the next 24-48 hours tend to be the toughest for him and for you.

All the best

Gil

 

[AgilityDog]

WhhhOOOOOOO! Great news! The next couple days will be rough, no doubt, but hang in there! And try to get some sleep for yourself, if you can.

Cookies??? Maybe, but I liked milk shakes and ice cream sundaes. When you don't want to eat, those seem to go down just fine.

 

[Snoviper]

Best Wishes for a Speedy recovery!

 

[Mentu]

Thanks, for your note, Joan. We like to hear feedback, especially, when it's good. Hopefully, you will both be surprised at how recovery goes. Best wishes.

Larry

 

[NealR]

2 Heart valves? Just like me.

Glad to hear things went well. For me, my recovery was something like steps. I didn't have good days or bad days, I had good hours, and bad hours.

After about 5 weeks I felt pretty good, and 6 weeks was back to my old troublsome self.

Hope everything goes well, the bovines are a good choice. Check with your surgeon/cardio, but diet and excersize are the key. Make sure you walk everyday, a little more each day.

Be prepared for anything, but after a month things will get better.

 

[kpearse]

Best Wishes for a fast recovery!

 

[malibu82]

hope he has a happy recovery!

 

[hall]

Good news. HOping for an uneventful recovery.

 

[dick0236]

Glad it worked out OK:thumbup:. Similar thing happened to me and I had to be reopened.....everything worked out just fine although it scared hell out of my wife:eek2:. I didn't know 'cause I slept thru it all:biggrin2:.

 

[Mileena46]

Hope things continue to go well!!

Mileena