July 3rd, 2009
I just received a very appropriate email from Barbara about her mother who is suffering from severe heart valve stenosis.
Barbara writes, “Dear Adam - My mother, who is a relatively active lady at 82 years old, was recently diagnosed as needing aortic valve replacement surgery. I’m obviously concerned and somewhat frightened given the invasive nature of this operation and her age. I just have to ask… Is 82 too old for heart valve surgery? Thanks, Barbara”
Considering the aging of our population, this is a great question for all of us to learn from. To start, did you know that 13% of people age 75 or older in the United States have at least moderate heart valve disease? That said, as the baby boomers continue to age, I imagine this question is going to be asked by many, many, many, many sons and daughters in the future.
As for my research about octogenerians (people over eighty) and heart surgery, consider the following:
Continue reading this post »
July 1st, 2009
It is one of the most important decisions for patients as they prepare for heart valve replacement surgery. That question is, “Which type of heart valve replacement device should I choose?”
There are several considerations that patients and their caregivers must evaluate relative to this question. Such considerations include durability, patient age, ongoing drug therapy, lifestyle, valve noises, activity levels, etc. I specifically remember creating a pros-and-cons list with Robyn (my wife) for each option prior to my own aortic valve replacement surgery.
Medtronic Mosaic Pig Valve ReplacementAnother patient consideration specific to mechanical and tissue valve selection is failure rates. As you can read in prior blogs, patients want to avoid valve replacement re-operations should the device fail while functioning in the human heart.
Unfortunately, I have been unable to locate published heart valve failure rates specific to each type of pig valve, cow valve, mechanical valve and homografts.
However, I just reviewed a very interesting study published by The Washington School Of Medicine about pig valve replacement failure rates that made my eyebrows jump to the top of my forehead. Here are the highlights from that study:
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July 1st, 2009
As you may have seen at our new heart valve surgeon database, each month we feature a cardiac surgeon as our “Heart Valve Surgeon Of The Month”. The neat part…This surgeon is nominated by a former heart valve surgery patient. Last month, I nominated Dr. Vaughn Starnes as our first featured surgeon.
Who will it be this month? Well… That is up to you!!! That’s right, you get to nominate your surgeon!!!
To nominate your surgeon, simply leave a comment or send me an email at adam@heart-valve-surgery.com. All you have to do is jot down one or two paragraphs about what makes your surgeon so great. It’s that easy!
I look forward to reading your nominations.
Keep on tickin!
P.S. To leave a comment, please click here.
About The Author: Adam Pick is a double, heart valve surgery patient and author of The Patient’s Guide To Heart Valve Surgery. This unique book integrates the clinical facts of heart valve surgery with the personal experiences of 78 former valve surgery patients to help patients and caregivers better understand the opportunities and challenges of heart valve surgery. To learn more about Adam and his heart valve surgery book, click here.
June 23rd, 2009
I just received a great question from Pete about elevated heart rates following heart valve surgery.
Pete writes, “Hi Adam, I had aortic valve replacement on April 8, 2009, about two months ago. My main concern is that my heart rate is running quite high at 80 to 90 beats per minute. Before surgery, my heart rate was around 60. I contacted my cardiologist about this three times. Each time, they tell me this is one of the side effects from surgery and it should diminish over time. Quite frankly, I am concerned my heart is going to wear out. Any thoughts? Thanks, Pete”
Without a doubt, Pete raises a very valid concern of patients following cardiac surgery.
Continue reading this post »
June 23rd, 2009
Thanks to Charlotte, I just heard about an interesting treatment for new and old heart surgery scars (including keloid scarring). The product is called Mediscar HD Scar Solution.
After doing some research on Mediscar, I learned that this scar treatment is 100% natural and has received many testimonials from heart surgery patients. Mediscar has also received several doctor recommendations. In discussing Mediscar’s efficacy, Dr. Edward Berger noted, “Scars from surgery, which used to require months… or even years to lose their red, rough appearance, fade away in an amazingly short time, leaving virtually no scarring at all.”
To illustrate the effect of Mediscar on heart surgery patients, below you can see an actual “before-and-after” comparison of an open heart surgery scar. The first picture was taken before the patient used Mediscar:
Here is a picture of the same patient after using Mediscar:
If you have any interest in trying Mediscar, I just learned there is a special Internet promotion going on right now. The company is offering a free, two-week trial of Mediscar. Please note, however, there is a small $5.95 shipping-and-handling fee with this promotion.
To learn more about Mediscar HD Scar Solution, click this link.
I hope that helps!
Keep on tickin!
About The Author: Adam Pick is a double, heart valve surgery patient and author of The Patient’s Guide To Heart Valve Surgery. This unique book integrates the clinical facts of heart valve surgery with the personal experiences of 78 former valve surgery patients to help patients and caregivers better understand the problems, the opportunities and the realities of heart valve surgery. To learn more about Adam and his heart valve surgery book, click here.
