Surgery Date is set, now it's decision time!

[mainframe]

For the person who sadly is so ill they are in the hospital for extended stays.

I'm sure your talking about somebody, but it wasn't me. I felt fine and saw my cardio in late July who told me I'd need surgery sometime after the first of the year. My tissue valve went downhill faster than we anticipated and when I saw him 4 weeks later, he said it's time. By the time I had surgery it went down some more. But "sadly so ill" wasn't me. As a matter of fact I worked 40 hours the week before my 2nd surgery.

You can't predict when or how your tissue valve will go south, but it will. It's great Jkm7 had a easy 2nd surgery and again choose tissue. We all tend to be optomistic and read how easy the second surgery was Jkm7 and think "that will be me too. There must be something wrong with that mainframe fellow". There isn't.

Pretty much that's why I haven't posted in along time. We are all supposed to share our experiences here but when I do someone usually come along and tries to invalidate what it is I say because my experience wasn't the happy "I've got a tissue valve and got out of the hospital in an hour" experience everyone seems to want to hear.

 

[Gail in Ca]

I got my mechanical at age 46. I will try to address your 2 concerns. I have found that generally, being on coumadin and testing myself once a week is a non-issue.
However, when I got my valve, my periods became much heavier and lasted longer and came back sooner. No one could tell me for certain whether it was coumadin or not. My pcp wondered if I just was going into pre menopause and it just happened to coincide with my surgery. I hope another young woman can respond and tell you if she took birth control pills to stop the heavy bleeding and regulate the time they come. Mine went from once a month for a week before my surgery to once every 2 weeks, lasting 2 weeks and heavy. I didn't try taking the pill, I don't know why, really. I guess it was because my husband had a vasectomy and I didn't need to take them.
I have had another OHS on coumadin with no problems at all. I'd say most doctors know how to deal with people on coumadin, at least in larger cities, well respected hospitals. I was very glad to finally go into menopause, no more periods, and being on hormone replacement therapy is not too risky for me because I'm on coumadin, which takes out the stroke equation, the big risk factor.
Now the sound. I must admit it is noticeable. I have found myself counting beats when my heart decides to beat irregularly. However, I think mine is just louder than most as my cardiologist has always mentioned he can hear me from across the room. But, I got used to it and it is a part of me. I went from tissue to mechanical and it was louder than I expected, but I felt it was better than choosing another surgery with a 2nd tissue valve. Many people here say theirs are very faint. Maybe it's because I'm a musician that I hear it more, I don't know.
I am happy with my choice of a mechanical valve. I live a full life, I feel like a healthy person, and I know I won't need another surgery in the future from valve failure.
Is there a woman out there on coumadin that got heavy periods right after going on coumadin?

 

[neil]

mainframe i dont think jkm was getting at you, what both of you have said is positive news for mech and tissue, and thats gotta be great news for anybody who is getting a valve, both are doing well, when i first joined this great site everybody just supported everybody,it didnt matter if you had mech, tissue ,pig cow, horse, dog ,plastic,paper,cotton, rubber, whatever we just helped, just laterly we have lost that a bit, in reality does it really matter what we have as long as we are happy, rant over back to the choc cake

 

[Lynlw]

I'm sure your talking about somebody, but it wasn't me. I felt fine and saw my cardio in late July who told me I'd need surgery sometime after the first of the year. My tissue valve went downhill faster than we anticipated and when I saw him 4 weeks later, he said it's time. By the time I had surgery it went down some more. But "sadly so ill" wasn't me. As a matter of fact I worked 40 hours the week before my 2nd surgery.

You can't predict when or how your tissue valve will go south, but it will. It's great Jkm7 had a easy 2nd surgery and again choose tissue. We all tend to be optomistic and read how easy the second surgery was Jkm7 and think "that will be me too. There must be something wrong with that mainframe fellow". There isn't.

Pretty much that's why I haven't posted in along time. We are all supposed to share our experiences here but when I do someone usually come along and tries to invalidate what it is I say because my experience wasn't the happy "I've got a tissue valve and got out of the hospital in an hour" experience everyone seems to want to hear.

Jk can defend herself if she chooses to, however I read that much differently than you did. I took her to mean w/ "For the person who sadly is so ill they are in the hospital for extended stays, there are many that are up and on their way home in 4-5 days for the second surgery" was so ILL post op, ie had complications etc and had a longer recovery, Nothing to do w/ how ill you or anyone was or wasn't before the surgery.
.

 

[MrsBray]

I am truly humbled by all the advice.
The many different situations.
The questions I didn't know I had!
Thank you!

Decision made and finalized with the surgeon 2\21.

 

[Soilman]

I was a very active 43 when I had it done. It was, indeed, a hard decision. However, I did a lot of research before making my decision. I chose an On-X mechanical valve because I did not want to go through the surgery again, and the On-X had the potential to go reduced anticoagulant or possibly even aspirin only. Honestly, the Coumadin has not been a problem. Yes, it is a bit of concern for future surgeries, etc., but others have dealt with it, so if that time comes, so will I.
The only bad decision is not to make a decision. Once you choose, go with it and don't look back!
As far as the noise. Yeah, I could hear it at times to begin with, but you grow used to it fairly quickly. I rarely even notice it now, unless I'm in a quiet room with a lot of hard surfaces, or in a position where I'd hear my own heartbeat anyway.

 

[river-wear]

However, I think mine is just louder than most as my cardiologist has always mentioned he can hear me from across the room. But, I got used to it and it is a part of me. I went from tissue to mechanical and it was louder than I expected, but I felt it was better than choosing another surgery with a 2nd tissue valve. Many people here say theirs are very faint.

I guess your days as a ninja were over, huh? :tongue2:

Is there a woman out there on coumadin that got heavy periods right after going on coumadin?

Assuming I go mech, I'll let you know about the "female issues."

 

[epstns]

MrsBray - Mainframe is speaking from his own experience, as do I. My first (and only, so far) valve surgery was certainly no textbook success story. (Actually, my daughter would describe it as one car short of a train wreck.) I think I hit most of the speed bumps that I could, and if I missed any complications, I apologize to them so they will not rear their ugly heads if/when I need a re-op. I won't bother/scare you with my tale of woe (although you can find it if you search my posts from about 3 years ago), but I do want to be sure that you know that even if you do hit a lot of speed bumps like I did, once you get them sorted out, life will probably be great again, no matter which valve you choose.

And, no matter how polarized the discussion may get, we do want you to realize that we are here for you, no matter what choices you make. As Neil said, that is why we are here. We're a lot like family (we even call ourselves family) because we may squabble among ourselves, we may get loud and embarrassing at times, but our actions are all coming from the support and love we have for each other and for all the new folks who join us.

 

[dornole]

For what it's worth - my periods became much heavier just with the 325 mg aspirin daily I was prescribed after my mitral valvuloplasty in 2002, to the extent that I became anemic and it was a serious lifestyle problem. Could've been something else (not likely perimenopause, I was 34 then and 12 years later I still have no other symptoms), however I always wonder about it.

Since I'm done having kids, the problem was easily corrected with a simple in-office ablation procedure that I drove myself home after. I'm assuming most women choosing mechanical are done with pregnancies, so if you did develop this issue on Coumadin, there are many different gyno procedures now to address excess menstrual bleeding that are way easier than hysterectomy. So maybe now you are just down to the million other factors in your decision . . . ha.

 

[big_L]

I'm maybe four months post surgery and the valve clicking has disappeared. I haven't found the warfarin management to be that bad. Yes - I wish it was like other meds that have a broader therapeutic range.

You're lucky that your surgeon is open to the mech. valve option, as my impression is that more surgeons tend to recommend tissue.

As others have posted, do your research, sleep on it, talk to those close to you about it. You'll know in your gut when you've made your decision. The good news is you can't really make a 'bad' decision. Yes - future events may make you wish you'd made a different decision, but that's just LIFE for you. Good luck.

 

[Duffey]

For what it's worth - my periods became much heavier just with the 325 mg aspirin daily I was prescribed after my mitral valvuloplasty in 2002, to the extent that I became anemic and it was a serious lifestyle problem. Could've been something else (not likely perimenopause, I was 34 then and 12 years later I still have no other symptoms), however I always wonder about it.

Since I'm done having kids, the problem was easily corrected with a simple in-office ablation procedure that I drove myself home after. I'm assuming most women choosing mechanical are done with pregnancies, so if you did develop this issue on Coumadin, there are many different gyno procedures now to address excess menstrual bleeding that are way easier than hysterectomy. So maybe now you are just down to the million other factors in your decision . . . ha.

Same here in regards to extremely heavy periods, to the point of anemia, with the post-op aspirin dose I was prescribed. At the time, there were several threads on VR about the problem but that's eight years ago. In addition, most women at the time reported starting a period within 24-36 hours of the surgery. You received warafin in the hospital post-op which seems to trigger it. Yes, besides dealing with all the other hospital issues, you should be prepared for a period.

 

[ottagal]

In addition, most women at the time reported starting a period within 24-36 hours of the surgery. You received warafin in the hospital post-op which seems to trigger it. Yes, besides dealing with all the other hospital issues, you should be prepared for a period.

Yup! That is exactly what happened to me in ICU day 24 hours post op! The nurses didn't seem prepared for 'this kind of situation' but managed to find me "something". I wasn't on warfarin post-op, but 325 mg of aspirin as well as heparin injections. I agree with Duffy to be prepared for this. Isn't is fun being a female! See what you males are missing.

 

[dornole]

Getting a breast pump in ICU was also quite hilarious. Glad this group is here to let me know these things.

 

[Cromey]

Hi MrsBray,
I'm 39 and had my AVR surgery 6 days ago. In the lead up my Surgeon was strongly advising a mechanical valve because of my age and lifestyle. His preference however had no impact on my decision as I had already investigated and made up my own mind. Everyone has valid reasons why they sway tissue or mechanical, my reason choosing Mech was that I wanted to minimise future surgeries. While I haven't had a AVR before I have had various OHS's 3 times previously.
This AVR surgery has been the least painful and had the fastest recovery of all of them (so far, there's still a long way to go), but I'm sure that everyone here can agree that OHS is never pleasant. I know a mech valve may require another operation/s but for me tissue valve resurgery's (approx. every 8-15 years) would have felt like a millstone ahead my head. Btw I'm not a candidate of valve in valve replacement.
Best of luck in your choice.
Dave

 

[enkaynj]

I thought I had made up my mind firmly. Then I went to the cardiologist. Then I went to the surgeon. Here is what they have to say.

Cardiologist: Definitely go bio-prosthetic.

Surgeon: Definitely go mechanical.

I've got 2 weeks to make a decision. And I know that no matter what, I will ALWAYS second guess my decision. What do you say?

It was the other way around for me. My cardio said go Mechanical and my surgeon said go Tissue. I finally went with Tissue. Could it be that gender makes a difference ? I am a guy so maybe the parameters are different ?

 

[MrsBray]

So I chose mechanical. On-X. 7 months out, so far so good! I took about 3 months to stabilize my INR. I tick. I can hear it sometimes, others can hear it sometimes. I don't need to touch my carotid to check my pulse. Contrary to my initial statement, I don't think I will ever second-guess my decision.

I'm happy!

 

[Blue Sue]

Glad to hear the outcome! I am also 42 and having surgery in 4 weeks...my cardio and surgeon are split like yours...I am going mechanical.

 

[spartangator]

Wonderful to hear, MrsBray. Thank you for the update. Excellent that all's developing so well.

 

[chaconne]

MrsBray,

The decision for me to go mechanical came down to what I thought I could get used to. It seemed a lot easier for me to get used to taking a pill every day, hear a little clicking and be a little more alert to injuries rather than going through a major, life disrupting surgery every 10 years or so. Being 41 at the time, I though I could expect 2-3 more surgeries if I went tissue.

I am very active, even on Warfarin. I mountain bike, hike and do home construction projects. I've fallen off my bike, gotten banged up hiking, had deep cuts from doing construction work. The only difference I notice is bigger bruises.

 

[katielady72]

Mrs Bray, I am 41 years old and in July I had my OHS and chose a st jude mechanical valve and even though I now take warfarin every day for the rest of my life it was an easy decision as I knew I wouldn't want to go through it again in 5 years or so as that is also what my surgeon told me. I hear mine tick all the time and after 3 months am finally getting used to the sound but at least I know its regular and there isn't the worry of anymore abnormal rhythms and if ever there is I am likely to hear it first!!! I'm glad you are doing well