Tag: Mitral Valve Stenosis

Specialist Update

I went to the specialist’s appt. on Tuesday.
They admitted me to the hospital to get as many tests ran as possible I was released on Friday.

We did a 3D echo of the heart which was the coolest thing I have ever seen. Then a transesophageal echo is also known as a TEE, then a CT of the heart, lungs, and abdomen with contrast and without.

I have a leg doppler later this month and my cardio will discuss if I need a right-left heart cath.


It’s not an emergency that I do the surgery next week but, for my symptoms to go away I have to do surgery. My worst symptoms are dizziness and shortness of breath. Next up would be how worn out I get because of tiredness.


I am not a candidate for a valvoplasty there is too much regurgitation on the valve. I have to have a mitral valve replaced it can not even be repaired.


The surgeon I met with thinks my procedure can be done using robotics and thru the right side of the ribs. This would be a lot less invasive surgery than open heart surgery. He suggests the mechanical valve and coumadin for the rest of my life. With my age, this is the best option.
I already take Coumadin/ Warfarin so that is no change you just have to monitor it closely.


In the hospital, they put me on a Heparin IV drip because my blood was too thick they said a few weeks before surgery I will need to give myself shots in the stomach 2 x a day for a blood thinner. I am not at a therapeutic level at this time. My level is like 1.8 and for surgery, it needs to be between 3.5 and 4.5.


I really like this team of Drs and I love the less invasive surgery which would also mean less recoup time.

I am ready to get back to doing things I love like walking, photography, and playing with the dogs I feel like I have had to take a step back from everything I love. Our house in Livingston is about to be built and I want to be able to enjoy this time in my life.


Right now we are just chilling out about this and will make a decision sometime soon about when we think the best time might be.

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Heart update

We thought we had the AFIB under control then I went to Bradycardia my heart rate was super low.

It ranged from 42 to 46 beats per minute. What this does it make you feel cold inside your body like you are standing in a freezer. There’s not much blood moving at all.

I saw the cardio on Friday but he had me quit the Amioderane before I saw him.

I started a new script Warfarin to prevent blood clots.

I will see a heart valve specialist at Baylor/ St Lukes’s/ Texas Heart Institute next week.

This will see if I am a candidate for valvoplasty this is to get the AFIB under control. Evidently, my mitral valve is very small it’s stenotic. This makes my atrium very large and this causes too much blood to pool it is like flooding out the atrium and flooding my lungs.

It seems that the AFIB will continue and get worse each time this happens.

I am grateful we are outside of Houston and have access to some of the best Drs in the world. My current cardiologist has always listened to me and my concerns he is a great Dr.

Over the next few weeks there will be a lot more testing on my heart they have to make sure this will do me some good.

I will update you when I have more information to share.

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Mitral Valve Surgery Update

I had my transesophageal Tee Echo last week it is the one test that can give the best look at the heart and valves.

They do lots of measurements on the regurgitation, valve diameters, heartbeats, and other stuff.

Both my surgeon and my cardiologist have come to the conclusion that I can put off my valve surgery for now. This is a good thing because I was honestly dreading having my chest cracked open and that was the only surgery option I had.

How long it can be put off who knows but we are aiming for a year or so.

Some might ask why to put off something that is inevitable. Well, there are complications anytime you put a mechanical item into your body. There are complications for some people with the blood thinners and it requires monthly monitoring for some people it is weekly for others. This depends on how your body handles the drugs well I have A LOT of issues with medications so my luck I would be one that would have complications.

Right now my symptoms ( extreme shortness of breath, dizziness)  are being managed by adding new medications, changing old medications to better medications or reducing the dosage of an existing medication.

I feel very blessed and I am thankful I get to wait a while on this surgery. Thank you for all the prayers and good thoughts I appreciate your support.

 

 

 

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More testing

I have met with my heart surgeon who agrees with my cardiologist about the mitral valve replacement surgery.

It will be an artificial heart valve replacement and two blood thinners for the rest of my life. These typically last about 10 years.

I am having more testing done before the surgery this is to rule out any blockages. If they find any blockages that will have to be fixed before the heart valve replacement will take place.

First up Carotid artery scan this week.

Then heart catheterization and tee esophageal echo hopefully next week.

If all goes as planned I will be having surgery very soon.

I think the worst part for me will be the hospital stay since I do not like staying in a hospital much less for a week or more.

Cardiac rehab will follow me after I get out and I guess that will go on for about 6 weeks.

 

 

 

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Dr. Appointments, Testing and Results

I have spent the last few weeks at Dr. Appointments, testing and getting my results on follow up visits.

I have had 3 EKGs, 1 regular stress test, 1 nuclear stress test, 1 echocardiogram and I wore a Holter monitor for 24 hours. The only results that are not back yet are the Holter Monitor.

I have mitral valve stenosis this was discovered about 12 – 14 years ago. Almost every year without fail I have gotten my yearly echo that is until I got breast cancer and then I had other priorities to take care of. No one should ever put off their yearly heart testing that was not very smart of me but I have no one to blame but myself.

Mitral valve stenosis is caused by Rheumatic Fever but I never had that as a child or an adult. This was verified with my parents. Think of stenosis as a hose that is being stepped on and blood can not flow through the valve properly there is leakage spewing and backflow.

My mitral valve is what they call Moderate/ Severe, there is moderate regurgitation or leakage, as well as my Left Atrium,  is now enlarged. There is an estimated right ventricle systolic pressure of 45 – 50 mmHg. I am sure this will be verified by a heart catheter in the very near future.

The symptoms that this causes me are cough, chest pain, and soreness like a bruised feeling as well as dizziness and fatigue.

The Cardiologist says right now we have to get my pulse rate down to around 50 it runs 74- 80. To do this we have decreased my thyroid medication, changed BP meds to a channel blocker 2 x a day. He even added Lasix even though I am not retaining fluid he thinks there is fluid we are not seeing. All these things will ease up the pressures around the heart and hopefully help some of my symptoms.

On top of all this, I have lung issues emphysema and asthma so my lungs are not in the best shape.

In order for me to have Mitral Valve Replacement surgery the heart and the lungs have to be in the best shape, we can get them with medication. With getting an artificial valve replacement I will have to be on 2 blood thinners for the rest of my life.

I have a pulmonologist appointment this Friday and we will see if there is anything else we can do for my lungs to get them ready for this surgery.

Hopefully, by January this surgery can happen. It is open heart surgery which means more recoup time for me. The thought of cracked ribs scares me to death as well as being put on a heart-lung machine but I am trying to stay calm and not overreact.

I am sharing my story with you all in the hopes I can help someone else. I want others to learn through my experiences and I will do my best to keep everyone updated as new things happen.

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