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"Can The Ross Procedure Help Bicuspid Aortic Valve Patients?" Asks James

By Adam Pick on June 17, 2012

I just received a great email from James about the Ross Procedure and a diseased bicuspid aortic valve.

James writes, "Hi Adam - I'm 47 and recently told I need to replace my bicuspid aortic valve due to stenosis. Through your website, I've learned about the Ross Procedure as an option for me. It sounds interesting but I'm curious to know if the Ross Procedure can be used for my bicuspid aortic valve? Thanks, James"

Ross Procedure Diagram & Bicuspid Aortic Valve Picture

Typically, for technical questions about heart valve repair and heart valve replacement operations, I contact our cardiac surgeon team for their opinions on patient questions. Luckily, for this question, I can provide James a direct response.

The answer to James' question is...

Yes, the Ross Procedure operation can be used to treat patients who have a diseased bicuspid aortic valve. The reason I can confidently provide James a direct response is the fact that I had a Ross Procedure and I had a bicuspid aortic valve. So you know, my bicuspid aortic valve suffered from both stenosis (valve narrowing) and regurgitation (valve leaking).

Over the years, many patients from our community (Jeff, Melissa, Mark) have had successful experiences with the Ross Procedure.

Mellissa, Mark & Jeff - Ross Procedure Patients

Ross Procedure Patients - Melissa, Mark and Jeff

However, this is a very complex operation. You want to find a very, very, very experienced surgeon like Dr. Stelzer, Dr. Starnes, Dr. Gosta Pettersson or Dr. Trento if you believe this is the best surgical approach for you.

I hope this helped James (and perhaps you) learn more about the Ross Procedure and the treatment of a defective bicuspid aortic valve.

Keep on tickin!
Adam

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Written by Adam Pick - Patient & Website Founder

Adam Pick is a heart valve patient and author of The Patient's Guide To Heart Valve Surgery. In 2006, Adam founded HeartValveSurgery.com to educate and empower patients. This award-winning website has helped over 10 million people fight heart valve disease. Adam has been featured by the American Heart Association and Medical News Today.

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