Adam’s Heart Valve Surgery Blog

For all the Starbucks fans out there, I have some difficult news to share with you.

Brace yourself… Here it is:

“Coffee is not recommended right after any form of cardiac surgery, including heart valve surgery.”

Yes, I know. That’s a tough one. I can personally relate to what you might be going through right now. I remember thinking, “WHAT? NO COFFEE!” as I was discharged from USC Medical Center after my aortic valve surgery. (Actually, it wasn’t that dramatic.)

FYI, I typically start everyday with some form of hot caffeine drink - coffee or chai tea. (Did you know 90% of adults in North America drink at least one caffeine-enhanced drink every day? And, did you know that caffeine was discovered by a German chemist in 1819?)

Anyways, after cardiac surgery it is highly advisable to let your central nervous system (and heart rate) not react to artificial stimulants, like the caffeine in coffee.

Don’t worry though… It’s not permanent. My cardiologist gave me the green-light to start drinking coffee a few weeks after my aortic valve replacement.

Keep on tickin!

Adam Pick is the author of The Patient’s Guide To Heart Valve Surgery, a unique book which integrates the clinical facts of heart valve surgery with the personal experiences of an actual heart valve surgery patient. This special book was designed to help patients and caregivers better understand the realities of heart valve surgery (heart valve replacement and heart valve repair), to minimize patient stress and to enhance the patient’s recovery. To learn more about Adam’s heart valve surgery book, click here.

This entry was posted on Sunday, May 11th, 2008 at 9:21 am and is filed under Post-Operative Care. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site. Print This Post | EMail This Post.