Joseph's Guestbook

Joseph Minnucci  Hi Angus,  thanks for the support!  Yes, the cardiologist did tests and measurements after the initial issue was detected.  I don’t have the data from my first surgery handy.  When they first detected my issue, both GP and cardiologist were concerned, since it showed up suddenly with no previous history.  Since I did not have any symptoms, or underlying conditions (diabetes, plaque, cholesterol), I wanted to wait for surgery and  worked with my doctors to monitor my valve instead.  My first followup test was 3 months after the initial test, and thereafter we tested every 6 months.  The testing showed the valve slowly degrading.  I used the time to research hospitals, doctors, different types of valves available etc.  I didn’t put a time frame on when the surgery might be needed, but relied on the testing and recommendations of my doctors.




Hope this helps.




Joseph

Joseph Minnucci  Hi Damian,

I worked with Dr. Peter Rentrop in NYC. Understand your concern on not rushing into surgery, I felt same way when I was told I needed to schedule it. I ended up delaying surgery and monitoring / testing every 6 months before making the decision to have the surgery.

Joe

Joseph Minnucci  Hi Damian, I had reviewed from online sources, doctors as well as other patients. I asked for recommendations from my cardiologist and primary doctor. Online, I did searches for patients who had surgery in previous 2 years. An excellent starting point is the Surgeon listing on Heart Valve Surgery Blog.

I did do research on the Ross procedure, but it had seemed to have fallen out of favor. Consensus was it had higher risk and mortality rate than the mechanical or animal tissue valves. The higher risk, didn't offset the benefits for me.

Hope this helps. Feel free to ask me any other questions, and good luck with your surgery!"

Joe

Joseph Minnucci  I found discussing online with people helped anxiety as well. I also found doing a lot of research to make the decisions and understand what was going to help, calmed me. The valve choice is a big one, and I wanted to be part of the decision, which was why I not only talked to doctors but read as much as I could as to pros and cons. When is your surgery scheduled for? Joe

Joseph Minnucci  The valve I ended up with was rated up to 20 yrs. Based on age and activity level, my doctors felt I would get about 12-15 yrs out of it. Calcium build up was one of the big failure points of the tissue valves, and the surgeon wanted me to avoid all calcium supplements. Even recommended a calcium-free Multi Vitamin (Centrum Silver). Although the valve was treated to reduce deposits, it does not eliminate them, just gives a longer life. They are constantly advancing valve types, I would definitely ask what your surgeon recommends. At the time I had mine, it had just been approved for use. Joe

Joseph Minnucci  Hi Don, I ended up choosing the bovine valve. (Edwards 2800 model). The harder choice for me, was mechanical or tissue. The mechanical would last longer, but I had concerns over using Cumidin for rest of life (required monitoring diet and eating schedule and less active lifestyle), I chose tissue. At that point, the bovine valve was recommended by both cardiologist and surgeon. The main reasons were the newer technology being applied to the bovine which increased the life of the valve by preventing calcification. If you have any other questions feel free to ask, and good luck with your surgery!


Joe

Joseph Minnucci  Hi Lee, I talked to my cardiologist and rehab coordinator about the P90. Both felt it was a big jump at that point to go into. Rehab trainer recommend a 'less intense' effort to build up for 6 months, and then look into moving into parts of the P90. I was primarily doing running, Yoga and biking post surgery, and they recommended starting out with a weight lifting program, working up to P90.

Joe