Surgery #2

[jag004]

Hi, my name is Joe. I had a AVR with aorta aneurysm repair in 2013, with an Edwards Bovine Valve. I was on top of things in the beginning.

Recently, I waited too long to see my cardiologist and my valve is severely regurgitating. Not only did it severely enlarge and thicken my Left ventricle and left atrium, but it also caused the aneurysm to enlarge greatly. Somehow my EF is still 55.

I am 48, and my hope was for the doctors to go thru my leg, because my first surgeon told me "he specifically set up the first surgery knowing that a second surgery would come one day".

Needless to say they are going open heart again. I'm so upset. I messed myself up.
The doctors are optimistic of a successful surgery and the hopes that the new valve will somewhat reduce the size of the heart, but they never tell you when you are in big trouble, and I feel big trouble looming.


Please everyone, stay the course. The course works if you stick to it.

I love you all.

 

[dick0236]

Hi Jagoor. No point in worrying or scolding yourself about the past. You are only 48 years old. Your goal now is to work with your surgeon to minimize the need for any future surgical interventions. There are a lot of folks on this forum who have successfully gone through more than one OHS surgery.

 

[pellicle]

Needless to say they are going open heart again. I'm so upset

Sorry to again hear the fairy story promised didn't work out.

I hope you are considering a mechanical this time.

Reach out if you do and need a hand with INR management.

You've been there before, so you know the drill.

You've got this.

Best wishes

 

[Chuck C]

Sorry to hear about this Joe.

I am 48, and my hope was for the doctors to go thru my leg, because my first surgeon told me "he specifically set up the first surgery knowing that a second surgery would come one day".

The promise of "next time we'll just go through your leg" has led to great disappointment. There has been a very effective marketing campaign promoting this idea, making patients believe that they will never need another OHS. The good surgeons fully explain to their patients that not all will qualify for TAVI and as a young person getting a tissue valve, you really need to go into things expecting future open heart surgeries. Unfortunately, it seems that many surgeons fail to explain to their patients that TAVI on the next round is far from certain. Only after evaluation can this be determined. Even if you qualified for TAVI, in my view, it would be irresponsible to put a TAVI in a 48 year old, as TAVI is more appropriate for high risk candidates who are much older, given its questionable durability compared to other valve options. Also, at 48 you are still very young in the valve world and there will be another procedure in your future if they did TAVI and the next procedure following TAVI is more complicated and considerably more risky than a standard SAVR. So, I'm very sorry that anyone led you to believe that TAVI on round 2 would be a good plan, but in that you received your initial SAVR at age 37, I don't see how any responsible surgeon would have given you this hope.

The good news is that you are young and should do fine with a second OHS.

The doctors are optimistic of a successful surgery and the hopes that the new valve will somewhat reduce the size of the heart,

At age 48, you've got a decent chance of your LVH reversing, at least partially. Hoping that you get a full reversal back to normal dimensions.

Wishing you the very best in your upcoming procedure. Please keep us posted on how things go.

 

[Beach77]

@jag004 You made the best decision at the time. It's always hard making those decision! Keep moving forward and don't worry about the past-just learn from it! You're still young!

I agree with @Chuck C , you're too young for a TAVR! I wanted one at 64 and my heart team thought I was too young! They did give me the okay for one, but after talking to a surgeon I chose a mechanical. On-X.

Good luck with your surgery and healing!