During the past twelve months, this global community of patients and caregivers actively discussed many topics that have impacted our heart valve surgery experiences. As the year winds down, I thought it might be helpful to review all of these posts and highlight the top 10 stories that garnered the most attention during 2011.

So, without further ado, here are your “Top 10 Heart Valve Surgery Blogs of 2011″:

10. Much of our ongoing discussions focus on the proper management of patient expectations before, during and after surgery. To to help Denise prepare for her mitral valve repair surgery, we answered her question, “Do All Patients Get A Cardiac Catheterization Prior To Heart Valve Surgery?”. With over 25 comments from our community, this post was very helpful to Denise and many other patients preparing for surgery.

9. An interesting question from Alice about the recovery from heart valve surgery also generated a significant amount of traffic. In “What Are Those BIG Heart Shape Pillows Used For?”, Dr. Eric Roselli offered some clinical insights about these humongous, red pillows given to patients after surgery.

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Interestingly… The importance of today’s date escaped me until a few minutes ago.

That is when I saw “December 21″ on my calendar. I then eased my shoulders, took a deep breath and smiled. So you know, six years ago, at this exact moment, my heart valve surgery had just begun.

As for celebrating this anniversary, I could ramble on about the amazing journey that has unfolded since my aortic and pulmonary valve replacement surgery 2,190 days ago.  I could do my best to conjure up some inspirational words about the medical miracle of heart valve surgery. I could share select highlights from my “Second Chance” at life.

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Like many of you, I’m fascinated by the possibilities of medical technology.

Specific to heart valve treatment, I continue to talk with many patients, caregivers, physicians and industry experts about catheter-based technologies for heart valve repair and heart valve replacement. Recently, the frequency of those conversations has increased. So, to make sure you are aware of the latest news about transcatheter valve devices, here are some interesting updates.

• St. Jude Medical announced the first implant of the Portico aortic valve implant via catheter in its European clinical trial. This trial will support St. Jude’s effort to win CE Mark approval for commercial use in Europe. The trial is specifically designed for patients with severe aortic stenosis (narrow heart valve) who are considered too high risk for traditional open heart valve replacement through the sternum or ribs. To learn more, please click here.

Portico Aortic Valve Replacement (St. Jude Medical)

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As the year winds down, I wanted to take a moment to wish you all a very happy holidays!

I also wanted to thank you for your ongoing participation in this unique community. This has been an incredible year for this project. So you know, this website had over one million visits during 2011. Needless to say, that is a clear testament to the empowering ways in which we continue to help each other through the experience of heart valve surgery.

On behalf of Robyn, my wife, and Ethan, my son, “Happy Holidays!” and “Happy New Year!”

Keep on tickin’ in 2012!

Receiving updates from former patients is a great way to start the day. That said, I just heard from Sylvia Woolworth. You might recall that Sylvia, 76, had aortic valve replacement two years ago. As you can read in her last update, Sylvia took several steps to physically and mentally prepare for her heart valve surgery.

Recently, I learned that Sylvia, who lives in New Jersey, has a fun tradition during the winter holidays… Sylvia takes on the fun role of playing “Mrs. Claus” at holiday events.

Sylvia “Mrs. Claus” Woolworth – Aortic Valve Replacement Surgery Patient

In her note, Sylvia wrote to me:

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