Wiggletts MVR or Replace

[Wigglett]

I am scheduled for surgery on June 9th for Mitral Valve repair as i have severe regurgitation .I am 46 years old . my surgeon told that i have to choose a valve if the repair doesnt work or it is un repairable . I have been doing research on the internet .I would like some opinions from some people who have had this done. I have read about the risks of coumidin.i have been told that its not that big of a deal ? when they do the surgery they are going in under my right armpit has anyone esle had it done this way ?How painful is it versus going in thru the sternum . I also have atrial fibrillation and they are going to do the maze procedure any comments or concerns please pos


Talked to my surgeon today about the many questions I had concerning Valve choice . He told me due to the fact that I have A-fib i probably would end up on Coumadin anyways so he highly reccomended the mechanical valve . The next question was brand he also highly reccomended the ATS he said it was the Cadilac of valves . I am hoping I dont need it ,he said his success rate of his Mitral valve repairs is 90 percent ,that is very comforting . Well any way JUNE 9th here I come

 

[RI Mom]

It is really interesting that they are going in that way for a MVR. I don't know anything about that but it sounds much less invasive to me. My six year old son has a mechanical mitral valve that was placed when he was 4 yrs old. It has done really well so far. The coumadin hasn't been the big deal that I thought it would be. We got a home monitor to check his INR and that has been a very good move since he doesn't cooperate at all when at the lab for a blood draw. In the 2 years we have had one ER visit regarding bleeding and that was when he slipped at the pool and hit his head on the tile. It was right above the temple and it blew up to the size of a golf ball (no joke). It ended up not being anything dangerous...it just looked scary. So far so good for us.

 

[zipper2]

I am scheduled for surgery on June 9th for Mitral Valve repair as i have severe regurgitation .I am 46 years old . my surgeon told that i have to choose a valve if the repair doesnt work or it is un repairable . I have been doing research on the internet .I would like some opinions from some people who have had this done. I have read about the risks of coumidin.i have been told that its not that big of a deal ? when they do the surgery they are going in under my right armpit has anyone esle had it done this way ?How painful is it versus going in thru the sternum . I also have atrial fibrillation and they are going to do the maze procedure any comments or concerns please post

big hello and welcome to vr,can't say anything bout under the arm surgery
ive had 2 vrs and been on coumadin 17 years and without risks of any sort.
1st surgery aortic repl.in 92 2nd past Jan for mitral,both valves mechanical.

someone more experienced on your type of surgery will come along to
inform you more eventually.
just wanted to welcome you here,glad but sorry for the reason and all the best on your surgery in June.

zipper2 (DEB)

 

[lb151]

I have had 2 of the mini invasive surgeries. The first was 11 years ago to repair the mitral valve,,the 2nd last summer to replace the valve. The second time was much worse as far as the pain goes.I am still convinced having to go through the sternum has to be more painful with a longer recovery time. I am also in controlled rate a-fib. The maze was to be done but I had been in a-fib far to long. Nothing has worked for it,so we control it. The coumadin is not an issue. You will do fine!
good luck

 

[Jkm7]

Welcome to VR.com. Happy you found us but sorry for the reason.

I had two OHS in four years and my second was about 15 months ago. My surgeon at Mass General tried hard for mitral valve repair but knew it was not going to be a good one and went with my choice for bovine tissue valve. I am older than you though not yet Medicare. I did not wish to have a mechanical valve and I'm grateful my surgeon honored my wishes. Both my surgeries were cracked sternum.

My biggest nightmare was a failed repair which would mean a third surgery way too soon. For me, I know I made the right choice to have tissue valve.

Good luck.

 

[Freddie]

Well Welcome there Mr. Wigglette, you found the right place for your answers.
Although I can't answer all of them what I can tell you is that I have mechanical mitral valve and my surgeon said he would try to repair it, if he couldn't he'd put in a mechanical. I did not have a choice on what type of mechanical but I felt he was very confident on using the carbiomedics valve. I'm on coumidin/warfarin and haven't had any problems.

As for the surgery via sternum, the most common complaint is neck, back and shoulder pain. The sternum itself doesn't really hurt, but some have experienced infection in and around the stitches - is that common I'm not sure.

The best thing for you to do IMHO is find out which valve your surgeon feels the most comfortable on using.

 

[Ross]

I am 46 years old . my surgeon told that i have to choose a valve if the repair doesnt work or it is un repairable. I have read about the risks of coumidin.i have been told that its not that big of a deal ?

Because of your age, I would suggest mechanical to avoid more surgeries down the road. Realize that there are no guarantees that you won't have to have another, but the odds of it happening with mechanical are greatly reduced. I'm for anything that will keep you off the surgical table, if at all possible, in the future.

As for Coumadin. The largest single problem we see in here on a daily basis is that the medical profession, in most cases, does not understand how to dose the drug. Those of us that home test and self dose laugh because we get it and they don't. I'm forever hopeful that I'll see all of them on the same page in my lifetime, but it isn't looking good. With that being said, please read the stickies in the Anticoagulation forum and visit www.warfarinfo.com to address any concerns with anticoagulation and Coumadin.

You've already heard a lot of B.S. concerning the drug. Everyone does! It's perpetuated throughout the medical community and by those that do not understand it or take it. We'll happily dispell any myths you've heard.

I'm proud to say, that though we are not professionals nor doctors, we've brought more people in range and stable here, then the Doctors or clinics have. We must be doing something right!

 

[Marcia58]

Hi! I'm new here! I had MV repair just 2 months ago, with the mini-thoracotomy incision (under my right breast). I can't compare it to the sternum, but it did hurt! By 2 weeks post-op, though, I had no restrictions, and by 5-6 weeks I was carrying my 2yo granddaughter on my shoulders for several blocks! The biggest pain issues were taking a deep breath, and range-of-motion pain on my right side. Don't be afraid to take meds to stay ahead of the pain!

Please feel free to ask questions if you'd like more details.

 

[bugchucker]

Hi there Wiggletts. Can't help with armpit entry...I had my chest cracked, as Fredie noted it still does not hurt, it's actually quite numb. I'm younger than you (37), but had no choice but to go with a tissue valve, so I'll probable be back on the table in my 50s. I've read lots of positive postings about ON-X and St. Judes, my doc refused to consider ON-X as he did not have any experience with it and it was cost prohibitive for me to go to the Cleveland Clinic.

Anyway, warm welcom to VR, sorry for the circumstances, but you have found some of the nicest/most helpful people on the planet, even one not of this world (Ross...)

 

[Blanche]

Hello neighbor

Hello neighbor

I was wondering where you are planning to have your valvereplacement done.
We live in Tempe.

My husband is the valver and he had his Mitral replaced in 1990. There were few, if any, choices back then. Now there are many excellent facilities that deal with this procedure. He went to Desert Sam, Dobson and Southern, Mesa.

We wish you the very best on your up coming surgery.

Blanche

 

[bugchucker]

Welcome Marcia

Welcome Marcia

Hi! I'm new here!

Welcome! Glad your surgury went so well!

 

[Wigglett]

I was wondering where you are planning to have your valvereplacement done.
We live in Tempe.

My husband is the valver and he had his Mitral replaced in 1990. There were few, if any, choices back then. Now there are many excellent facilities that deal with this procedure. He went to Desert Sam, Dobson and Southern, Mesa.

We wish you the very best on your up coming surgery.

Blanche

I am having my surgery at Banner Estrella , My surgeon is on the board of directors he has a great track record I go in June 9th

 

[Wigglett]

I am so happy I found this place . I cant thank you all enough for the warm welcome .As it gets closer to my surgery date the more nervous I get . My Surgeons Name Is Dr Kevin Brady . I cant wait to get this behind me

 

[tex]

Hi and welcome aboard,
I had an AVR and they did manage to repair my mitral valve. I too like Ross had a Mechanical AVR fitted i was advised to have this because of my age, i am 45, was told hopefully the Valve would out live me, i know there are no guarantees to what ever Valve you have fitted but if this gives me the best chance to not have to go through OHS i was doing what the surgeon recommended.
As for Warafrin yip i had a few problems at first getting my levels right, but with the help of the guys on here i asked their advice as to my dosage and have been following what they said and guess what since i have been doing that i have stayed in range, infact i went back yesterday after a month and my level was 3.1 which is great and dont have to go back for 6 weeks.
But you have to decide yourself which Valve if you need one to have, there are lots of guys on here who will give you advice, and help you decide.
Take Care and let us know how your doing
Jane

 

[Wigglett]

Please read update in original post

 

[Marty]

Doesn't sound like you are a prime candidate for repair. I think you should ask your surgeon what he has heard about On-X valves. Most experienced surgeons I have communicated with now think it is the best valve. If you got one you might eventually get to come off warfarin and just take aspirin. There is a big long trial going on right now( won't be finished for a couple more years) to determine if this is feasible. I wanted a repair but my valve was so torn up the surgeon decided not to try for it.This is where surgical judgement comes in.

 

[dtread]

The Clinical Trial with the On-X will not result in anyone just being able to take aspirin. Low risk AVR would have to take Clopidogrel (i.e., Plavix) and aspirin (or have the option of remaining on Warfarin [aka Coumadin]).

There are three arms to the Trial: low risk aortic valve replacement - aspirin/Plavix, high risk aortic valve replacement - Coumadin at INR of 1.5 to 2.0 plus aspirin, and mitral valve replacement - Coumadin at an INR of 2.0 to 2.5 plus aspirin.

Recommend you read the Clinical Trial: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT00291525