Hey Pete, I went through the same trauma.
But stuck with my original decision. Mechanical valve. Warfarin isn\'t that bad, it\'s something you can control. ...Read more
Hey Pete, I went through the same trauma.
But stuck with my original decision. Mechanical valve. Warfarin isn\'t that bad, it\'s something you can control. When you you go bio the prosthetic starts to deteriorate on the first beat. You might need the 2nd op before the catheter option kicks in. By now you\'ve made your decision and are through your op and into post op I would assume. You\'ve got a lot more knowledge abd insights than pre op so all the best no matter which way you went.
Hi Pete,
I\'m having my surgery the day after tomorrow (so, on day after you ... wow, it came up quickly, hey).
I decided to go with a tissue valve instead ...Read more
Hi Pete,
I\'m having my surgery the day after tomorrow (so, on day after you ... wow, it came up quickly, hey).
I decided to go with a tissue valve instead of mechanical to replace my bicuspid aortic. (Are you having your mitral or your aortic valve replaced?). I am aware that I will have to have the valve replaced again in around 10 to 15 years. I\'m optimistic about having a second procedure because there are so many advancements in medical technology these days, who knows what they\'ll be able to do in ten years?
On the other hand, I\'m a 26 year old female with plans of starting a family in the next year, so the mechanical valve would make all of my future plans more difficult. Still, I am of the same mindset that I would like to put off using Coumadin for as long as possible!
Good luck tomorrow! Sara Sayle
Pete, hello my name is Ed Gilbertson (also on this heart valve blog). One month ago today, I had my aeortic valve replaced... I did a LOT of research and finally ...Read more
Pete, hello my name is Ed Gilbertson (also on this heart valve blog). One month ago today, I had my aeortic valve replaced... I did a LOT of research and finally decited on the On-X mechanical valve. I spoke to a heart surgeon at Mayo that has put about 40 On-X valves in and he highly recommends this valve. I don\'t remember his name, but if you get in touch with Mayo Clinic they can give you his name. The reason I choose the On-X is because I may be able to go off coumadin and just take plavix and asprin in a few years (by the way, the coumadin is not that big of a deal to take daily anyway). Prior to deciding, I was 90% sure about the On-X until I spoke to the Mayo surgeon who said the valve is truly everything they claim it is....excellent. I now believe it IS the best valve out there.My heart surgeon at Sanford in Sioux Falls, SD said this was the first On-X he had put in and he would recommend it to anyone. Good luck with your decision, I hope this information will help you. Keep on tickin\'...Ed
Pete, the choice is very personal and different for us all. For me, the thought of a potential second surgery was much scarier than having to take warfarin ...Read more
Pete, the choice is very personal and different for us all. For me, the thought of a potential second surgery was much scarier than having to take warfarin for the rest of my life. The down side to the mechanical valve, which I chose, is the warfarin. Having to watch for all the other drug interactions. Either way, you will make the right choice for you. Good luck. Jon Farmer
Pete,
Was just thinking of you and wanted to drop you a line and make sure that you were more mentally prepared than I am for next week! Take care and God ...Read more
Pete,
Was just thinking of you and wanted to drop you a line and make sure that you were more mentally prepared than I am for next week! Take care and God Bless, you will make the right decision, I just know it. Whatever decision that you make is the right decision. Take care and God Bless. I wish you the speediest of recoveries.
Jim Davis
Pete Johannsen Hey Jim! Thank you!!!!
I am ready for the surgery...but am NOT ready for the CHOICE!!!! :-(
I read t ... Read more
Pete Johannsen Hey Jim! Thank you!!!!
I am ready for the surgery...but am NOT ready for the CHOICE!!!! :-(
I read the post below and all of a sudden I feel like the tissue valve is the WRONG choice!
AHHHHH!!!!!!!
Hey Pete,
You might want to look into going with an On-X valve. I just got one implanted 7 weeks ago and I\'m 28 years old. Currently I\'m on coumadin and ...Read more
Hey Pete,
You might want to look into going with an On-X valve. I just got one implanted 7 weeks ago and I\'m 28 years old. Currently I\'m on coumadin and it doesn\'t seem to be to big of a deal. Currently the On-X is part of a FDA approved Plavix study that is showing excellent results. The study ends in 2015 and at this point the On-X mechanical valve will be the only mechanical valve to be approved for coumadin alternative, included in this study is patients running low INR\'s of 1.5 with the On-X valve. I\'m confident that once this occurs the On-X will prove to be safe with the new drug Pradaxa which currently has no known food or drug interactions and doesn\'t require regular blood testing. This is the only valve on the market to show any FDA approved hope for coumadin alternative and lower doses of coumadin in the very near future. The St. Jude Regent valve has no official FDA approved studies going on at this time for alternatives or lower coumadin levels.
Another great note about the On-X valve is that it\'s the only valve that has built in pannus growth protection. In the 16 years the valve has been on the market there have been no reports of pannus growth with the On-X valve. No other mechanical on the market has this feature.
I don\'t know if you have ever had valve surgery before but its not fun and recovery can be very difficult, if you can avoid doing the surgery again I would, mechanical offers best chance of another surgery. I didn\'t want to take \"blood thinners\" either and didn\'t want any limitations on my life but at 28 years old I\'m guaranteed a second surgery with a tissue valve, and in your 40\'s your guaranteed another surgery as well with a tissue valve.
If I was in my 60\'s I would of taken my chances with a tissue but this was not my reality. No choice is perfect but it truly didn\'t make any sense for me to do tissue and concerning catheter replacement for future tissue re-ops there is currently a higher risk of stroke with these at about 15% at the current time during surgery and short term post op. There trying to bring this number down before they make it standard, so we can\'t hold our breath for this option to be approved.
Either choice you make is better then doing nothing and each valve choice has its pros and cons. I studied valve choices for 2 years before I made my choice. I\'m currently very happy with the choice I made.
I guess as far as valve choice I am going to listen to my DR......I have looked at the On-X valve and I think it is very similar to the Regent. According to my DR if Pradaxa is approved for the on-x vlave it SHOULD be with the Regent.....but I am sure we both know nothing is a "promise" when the FDA is involved.
Still...I do thank you for the advice! I still have not made my mind up....
The thing that scares me about Pradaxa...what will it cost! I have great insurance....but if it's $500/month.....I would hate to run into a financial problem and get stuck with a huge med payment...
Still....thank you for the response! keep on tickin' butt! ;-)
HI Pete, Dean Muglia here. I am 50 years old and had my aortic valve replaced 8 months ago. I agonized over the same decision. Here is my take after talking ...Read more
HI Pete, Dean Muglia here. I am 50 years old and had my aortic valve replaced 8 months ago. I agonized over the same decision. Here is my take after talking with several hospitals and the two best clinics in the country. The more traditional, conservative thinking institutions recommended mechanical while the more progressive, future thinking institutions recommended tissue. I felt like there is this shift happening to challenge the old thinking regarding when to go mechanical vs tissue. The technology is changing very fast.
What sealed the decision for me was this: The Cleveland Clinic was the only place I found that would do minimally invasive surgery to replace my valve and repair the ascending aorta. All the other places wanted to do the full cut. The Cleveland Clinic is very progressive and forward thinking. \"Normal\" surgeries to them we very complicated surgeries to others. They RARELY do mechanical valves and don\'t recommend it for a few reasons:
The mortality rate of a second surgery in their shop is less than the risk of being on blood thinners
They are already doing catheter fed valve replacements as an FDA test facility and totally believe it will be the standard soon (as it is in Europe)
The above coupled with no lifestyle restrictions made it a clearer choice for me. You are younger which may tilt the scales a bit more the other way. In any event, the right choice is the choice you make !!
All the best.....Dean
It seems the second I am comfortable with a decision a different set of questions come up and it sways my decision.
I think your point of a "traditional" hospital and "progressive" is a GREAT point! (It actually gave me CHILLS in that I NEVER thought about that!!!)
I do have to think the hospital I am working with is a "traditional" hospital in some respects! The bottom line is they do what WORKS that will be the safest and most proven methods. This is a great thing in many respects! What good is a tissue or mechanical heart valve if you’re not around to use it!
Still, it's like being in a coma.....sure you’re alive, but your quality of life it's what it could be! (I am NOT saying being on Coumadin is like being in a coma, but they do sound similar! LOL..)
I talked to the DR's P/A today....and I will update my journal with what we talked about....still....thank you....you have brought up a point of the people giving me the information I never thought of...God Bless them....I would still trust them with my LIFE and they are doing what they feel is the safest option for me!
Hi Pete!
I just read your journal and I (like most valve patients) went through the same decision-making process as you are going through now. When I first ...Read more
Hi Pete!
I just read your journal and I (like most valve patients) went through the same decision-making process as you are going through now. When I first learned I needed a new aortic valve and started reading about the options, I first thought it was pretty much a no brainer - a mechanical valve would last me the rest of my life and I wouldn\'t need any more surgery. Yes, I would need to be on coumadin but what\'s the big deal about popping a pill every day??
But, I learned, NOT so fast. I learned that mechanical valves sometimes (more often than I would have thought) do need to be replaced (they fail, pannus grows, etc.) I also learned that being on coumadin is more than popping a pill each day. Blood levels are often hard to regulate and there are lots of times you need to go off the stuff raising risks of stroke, heart attack, etc.
What pushed me over the line to a bio-valve (I ended up with a Carpentier-Edwards bovine valve) was that EVERY doctor I spoke to (both professionally and friends who are doctors) told me they would do anything in their power to stay off coumadin if they were making the decision. That sealed it for me.
I\'m older than you (57 at the time of surgery) so I probably don\'t face as many re-surgerys as you do, but I\'m hoping that by the time my current valve fails (they say 15 years on average - as in all aspects of my life I\'m hoping to be \"above average\" in this too!) that the catheter method of implanting valves will be generally available and I won\'t need full-on OHS. But even if that\'s not the case, I found that my surgery was not terrible and I would gladly trade 15 years of not being on coumadin with having to have a second surgery.
What kind of valve to choose is a very personal choice. There is no right or wrong answer. Good luck making your decision.
Ricki Shine
Pete Johannsen Hey Ricki....
Thank you for the response!!!!
I met with one of the nurses that work in the hospital ( ... Read more
Pete Johannsen Hey Ricki....
Thank you for the response!!!!
I met with one of the nurses that work in the hospital (and also goes to the church I and my Parents belong to) and she too thought it was a tough decision. BUT, she would think the mechanical valve is the BETTER option!!!
I think I am going to update my journal with some more info here very soon....plus since she (the nurse that I talked with) has contacts in the hospital, she gave my contact info to the Dr's assisstant! (His P/A) I am @ work right now and she called me as I was in a meeting so I am going to call her now....
Again...THANK YOU for your response!!!!It does mean a lot to me!!!!