Recently, I received a great question from Emilyrae. She wrote, “Adam – I am a healthy person. I’m 68-years old and I just had a successful mitral valve repair.  I’m curious to know, is there anything I can do to ensure that this repair will last the rest of my life?”

While at the Heart Valve Summit, I was fortunate to discuss Emilyrae’s question with Dr. Rawn Salenger, the Director of Valve Surgery at Good Samaritan Hospital in Suffern, New York. The video below contains the highlights of our discussion. (For the members of our community who are hearing impaired, I have provided a written transcript of this video below.)

Thanks to Emilyrae for her question and a special thanks to Dr. Rawn Salenger for taking the time to educate our community about this very important post-operative topic.

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I just received an interesting question from Joanie. She writes, “Hi Adam – My husband had mitral valve repair surgery three days ago. I noticed that he’s gained 8 pounds since the surgery. The doctors say the gain is due to fluid intake. Is this common? What fluids did they use? How long until he loses the fluid? Thanks, Joanie.”

While I had my thoughts on the topic, I wanted to provide Joanie an expert opinion. That said, I contacted Dr. Larry Cohn, who practices at Brigham & Women’s Hospital in Boston. During his 40-year career, Dr. Cohn has performed over 10,000 cardiac procedures.

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As many of you know, I encourage all patients to participate in a cardiac rehabilitation program following heart valve surgery. Research shows that the physical and emotional benefits for patients attending post-operative cardiac rehab classes are significant but often under-utilized.

That said, here is a great update from Dave Hooper. (You might recall that I featured Dave in a prior post following his aortic valve replacement surgery.)

Dave Hooper At Cardiac Rehab

In his email, Dave writes to me…

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I just received a very interesting question from Jake about chest pain, sternum wires and heart valve surgery.

Jake writes to me, “Dear Adam – It’s been 2 years since my aortic valve replacement. While my heart is doing great, I still have a very sensitive incision. There are spots along my sternum that, if I press on, cause a shot of pain. My chest also hurts if I twist in odd ways. Is it possible that the sternum wires are causing this discomfort. If so, can I get them taken out? Is that a big procedure? Thanks! Jake”

Xray of Sternum Wires After Open Heart Surgery

While I have my own thoughts on this topic, I wanted to provide Jake an expert opinion. That said, I contacted Dr. Lishan Aklog, the Chief of Cardiovascualr Surgery at St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Phoenix, Arizona, to learn more.

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Last week, at the American Association for Thoracic Surgeons meeting, Ted sent me a great question about atrial fibrillation after heart valve surgery. He writes, “Dear Adam, I had my aortic valve replaced. The new valve is a pericardial tissue heart valve. What causes A-Fib after surgery? I had one incident of A-Fib while in the hospital followed by four more incidents two weeks after surgery. Thank you! Ted”

To help Ted, I asked Dr. Niv Ad, the chief of cardiac surgery at Inova Heart & Vascular Institute in Falls Church, Virginia, this exact question. So you know, a key research initiative of Dr. Ad’s practice focuses on atrial fibrillation. Here is Dr. Ad’s video response to Ted.

I want to thank Ted for his question. Plus, I have to offer a special thanks to Dr. Niv Ad for his continued support of this patient and caregiver community. Dr. Ad has really helped transform this resource from an ordinary website into an extra-ordinary community. Thanks Dr. Ad!!! To learn more about Dr. Ad’s practice, please click here.

For those of you who are hearing impaired, I have provided a written transcript of this video interview below.

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