What Is A Calcified Aortic Leaflet?
August 21st, 2007As you can read in my story, I had my aortic and pulmonary valves replaced (via the Ross Procedure) in 2005.
At thirty five years of age, my bicuspid aortic valve was worn down. My diseased valve suffered from aortic stenosis and regurgitation.
After surgery, my heart surgeon, Dr. Vaughn Starnes of USC Medical Center in Los Angeles, California, informed me that my aortic valve was “very, very sick… and very, very calcified.”
“Calcified?” I thought to myself, “What the heck does that mean?”
Well… It turns out that heart valves can calcify. When valve leaflets calcify, the leaflets become thickened and hardened, producing a narrow valve opening.
To give you an idea of what a calcified aortic valve looks like, please see the picture below.
According to reports, Fibro-calcific degeneration occurs mostly in the aortic valve and it most commonly impacts adults over 65 years of age.
Pretty interesting picture, right? 
Keep on tickin!
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| 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 clinical research with the personal experiences of 135 former patients to help future patients and their 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. |
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