Worried about ankle swelling 5 months post surgery

[tigerlily]

Hi all, I haven't been here much lately, I've just been trying to get my life back on track. As some of you will remember, I had my second aortic valve and root repair the end of last year, 2018. Except for AFIB after surgery, everything went well. I was on Amiadarone for 3 months and I'm still on Eliquis. I completed cardiac rehab and everything has been going well until, last Saturday a week ago. After a day of house cleaning, I saw that my ankles were swollen. I've had no problems with swelling since right after surgery. I still have it a week later, it's worse later in the day but it's no worse than when it started. Could something be going really wrong? Walking up hills has seemed harder but I'm not breathless at night lying flat or with normal activities. I can't get in to see my cardiologist until the week after next. My last echo had these results and I wonder if my cardiologist made light of some of the findings. Your thoughts are needed and yes I'm low salt and drinking suggested water intake. Here is the summary of my echo and thank you all so much for being here.
Study Result
Narrative
· Technically difficult study due to chest wall/lung interference
· Normal left ventricular systolic function, ejection fraction > 55%
· Left ventricular hypertrophy - mild
· Mitral regurgitation - mild
· Dilated left atrium - mild
· Aortic valve replacement (23 mm bioprosthetic valve implanted
12/28/2018)

 

[Duffey]

I battle fluid retention, I’m on a daily diuretic, and I have learned that there are many factors that can affect the level on a day to day, or weekly basis. Are you weighing every day at the same time of day? Keeping track of your weight fluctuation is probably the most accurate way to gauge retention, and it will provide a record to show your cardiologist. My opinion, for what it’s worth, of your echo results is that there’s nothing remarkable about them so I doubt that there’s anything amiss. If you contact your cardiologist, it’s possible that you may be put on a short course of diuretics but that’s fairly common. Best wishes!

 

[tigerlily]

I battle fluid retention, I’m on a daily diuretic, and I have learned that there are many factors that can affect the level on a day to day, or weekly basis. Are you weighing every day at the same time of day? Keeping track of your weight fluctuation is probably the most accurate way to gauge retention, and it will provide a record to show your cardiologist. My opinion, for what it’s worth, of your echo results is that there’s nothing remarkable about them so I doubt that there’s anything amiss. If you contact your cardiologist, it’s possible that you may be put on a short course of diuretics but that’s fairly common. Best wishes!

Helps a lot to hear from you. I hope this might just be my heart and system remodeling after surgery and getting use to a new valve while I becoming more active than I've been in a while. Do you have any idea why you have fluid retention? Thank you.

 

[Duffey]

Helps a lot to hear from you. I hope this might just be my heart and system remodeling after surgery and getting use to a new valve while I becoming more active than I've been in a while. Do you have any idea why you have fluid retention? Thank you.

Yes, I suffered from pericardial constriction following my avr fourteen years ago. My cardiologist started me on the diuretic about three months post-op to reduce the amount of work my heart had to do. The condition very slowly resolved, but I remain on a lower dose of diuretic.

 

[carolinemc]

Hi all, I haven't been here much lately, I've just been trying to get my life back on track. As some of you will remember, I had my second aortic valve and root repair the end of last year, 2018. Except for AFIB after surgery, everything went well. I was on Amiadarone for 3 months and I'm still on Eliquis. I completed cardiac rehab and everything has been going well until, last Saturday a week ago. After a day of house cleaning, I saw that my ankles were swollen. I've had no problems with swelling since right after surgery. I still have it a week later, it's worse later in the day but it's no worse than when it started. Could something be going really wrong? Walking up hills has seemed harder but I'm not breathless at night lying flat or with normal activities. I can't get in to see my cardiologist until the week after next. My last echo had these results and I wonder if my cardiologist made light of some of the findings. Your thoughts are needed and yes I'm low salt and drinking suggested water intake. Here is the summary of my echo and thank you all so much for being here.
Study Result
Narrative
· Technically difficult study due to chest wall/lung interference
· Normal left ventricular systolic function, ejection fraction > 55%
· Left ventricular hypertrophy - mild
· Mitral regurgitation - mild
· Dilated left atrium - mild
· Aortic valve replacement (23 mm bioprosthetic valve implanted
12/28/2018)

Just talk to your doctor and get suggestions, you may get put on a dietretic for you may be suffering from water retention, which can be hereditary, as I get mine from my father. I even get swollen ankles in the summer, when the humidity is high. I have to wear my shoes for compression. Good luck at the doctor.