Comments on: Two Great Questions About The Ross Procedure… From Duane

By: mercyturan

mercyturan — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 21:42:53 +0000

To Dawn:
If it is not an indiscrete question, do you work at the University of Florida?
and is that where you had your surgery done? I am the mother of a 38 y/o Ross Procedure patient, who had surgery at Shands March 2008. One of my biggest fears (and I later learned our son’s also) was that the thoracic surgeon scheduled to to do surgery did not have as many Ross Procedures under his belt as I would have preferred, according to my research. One of our son’s concerns was to be close to home and to his family and babies. He was concerned, but after speaking with the surgeon, he was “sold”.

To date, he has done very well, though he had a postoperative period NOT without complications, and a long recovery period. He had no other medical problems and had been very active, as Adam, before his surgery.

We have to say that his quality of life is better now in that we do not have that concern and worry, and although we strive to stay abreast of new developments in heart valve replacement, we have all chosen to be positive and expect the best outcome.

By the way, our experience with that thoracic surgeon, Dr. Bleiweiss, was very positive, he is a humble, caring and compassionate individual, as well as is his team. The care at Shands Hospital Pedi ICU was the best.

To Duane: do the best groundwork, get your second and thrid opinions, interview or research as many doctors as your financial condition may allow, chose the best doctor you can find (for your circumstances) and trust . This and a truly positive attitude will help enourmously. God Bless!

By: Duane

Duane — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 21:32:38 +0000

Bruce,
Yes, Dr John Oswalt is my surgeon. My wife works at St. David’s and has hand picked the surgical and recovery team for me. I feel very fortunate to have a loving wife with a medical background to help guide me. But I am also grateful to the information on this blog and Adam’s book. I can’t imagine doing something like this without getting all the possible information available.
Dawn,
Thank you for your input as well. Your story reasures me that the Ross is the right way to go for me too!

By: Dawn

Dawn — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 18:27:01 +0000

I had the Ross procedure last November. I too had the concern about the pulmonary valve and was very reassured to be told about the almost certain ability to have it replaced in a cath lab in the very near future. The decision regarding which procedure to have was one of the toughest I have ever had to make. I did a lot of research and talked at length with the surgeons, my cardiologist, and the manager of the Warfarin Clinic where I would have been followed had I chosen a mechanical valve. I also spoke to people who had had both Ross and mechanical procedures.

In the end, I am so glad I had the Ross procedure. I was 51 years old when I had the surgery and did not want to face certain resurgery in 10-15 years with a pig valve. The more I learned about Warfarin the more I knew I did not want that life style change. Prior to surgery I was out of breath and somewhat limited physically, but I was not on any special medications, diets, etc. The idea of having to change my lifestyle so much AFTER having the surgery because of the medication I would have to take made the idea of a mechanical valve just seem intolerable. The Ross procedure was what I wanted, however it was a difficult decision because my finances and health plan limited my choices of surgeons. I possibly could have fought this with my insurance company but instead decided to trust 2 surgeons at the university where I work. One is an adult cardiovascular surgeon and the other pediatric. The pediatric surgeon had done the most Ross procedures-both on brand new babies and on adults. He had not done as many as I would have liked, but I had great confidence in him. I specifically asked him if it was him which procedure he would choose. He is exactly my age. Without hesitating he said the Ross procedure.

I had a good outcome and feel great now that I am fairly recovered from the surgery. I have very slight mild aortic regurgitation (had moderate stenosis for years), which the surgeons are not real happy with. However, my cardiologists says he has multiple patients he has followed with aortic regurgitaiton for literally decades without it progressing and requiring surgery. At this point it does not concern me and I am not unhappy with choosing the surgeons I chose.

By: Bruce Hale

Bruce Hale — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 18:08:11 +0000

Duane-
I do hope you have spoken to/scheduled your surgery with Dr. Chip Oswalt?…
I had my Ross done December 10, 2008 and only spend 3 days at the Heart Hospital in Austin. Dr. Oswalt is BRILLIANT!!!
Do not hesitate to contact me should you have questions.
Best of luck,
Bruce Hale
Ross Procedure Patient