Gosh it sounds like such a slog. We're all pulling for you Charlie. Hang in there. Good things are about to happen. -- DVB

Charlie and Julia, so sorry you are having such problems with the antibiotics. Endocarditis alone is bad enough. I am a retired hospital microbiologist and having had aortic stenosis myself, I was always very strict with the phlebotomists when they drew blood cultures. I know that gentamicin can be a real bear! Hopefully Charlie will be able to stop it soon. I have been through Supply several times going to my father's beach house on Oak Island. So we are practically neighbors, Carolina guys and gals! I had my aortic valve replaced by Dr. Gillinov at Cleveland Clinic and it was the best decision I ever made. Totally worth the inconvenience of going that far. I chose the bovine tissue valve, so I will probably have to go back at some point, but it was so much easier than I thought it would be, I don't dread having surgery again in the future if necessary. Hope you get to feeling better soon and your hearing issues worth themselves out.

Linda Dixon, AVR 3/13/12

Hi Charlie, this is Jim again. I had my surgery done here in CT, the hospital is part of the Yale group. I am very happy with my surgeon for a few reasons. 1. I am here to talk about it and I feel great. 2. He is a mitral valve specialist and performed a complex repair with success. 3. He fully explained my options and he is very easy to talk with. Everything you read on this website is true, be sure you are comfortable with your surgeon and know your options. Did you have the leaking aortic valve before the endocarditis? I agree with you Charlie, the endocarditis hit me like a ton of bricks also. Everything became a huge effort, my head even hurt and my thoughts were slow and cloudy. I actually thought I had a very bad sinus infection, the first Dr. said I had pneumonia, he was not quite right . The meds he gave me actually helped me feel better for a while but in the long run I wasted a month where I could have been getting proper treatment. It has been a long road, I thank God I am getting near the end of this and getting better every day. I wish the same for you, any other questions feel free to ask. All I know is that it is Friday night, I am off all medications, I am going out for a couple of cold ones for the first time in a long time!

Hi Charlie, I am Jim and I am from Connecticut. I also had endocarditis and just completed a 6 week infusion program. I had a mitral valve repair on 5/7/12. I am 54 years old and before my symptoms started in March I was active and healthy. I had a leaking mitral valve which I had checked every 6 months with no major change. I started getting chills, night sweats, fever and feeling very weak and tired. It took a while to get the correct diagnosis but once I began the antibiotics I began to feel better quickly. I had a TEE which showed some damage to my mitral valve from vegetations from the endocarditis . When I went in for my surgery I actually felt normal. I was lucky I had no side effects from the infusion, I had 2 grams of rocephin daily ,since I had a PICC line my wife was able to do this for me at home. A month since my surgery and I am walking over 2 miles a day and getting back to normal activities. I had the PICC line removed 2 days ago and except for still having pain in my sternum things are getting back to normal. Everything happened so fast, sometimes I find it hard to believe it was real. All the best to you Charlie, good luck, Jim

ECU is a good choice too. I have a daughter that lives in Greenville. She agrees.

I did not have depression after the surgery. (Thank Goodness) I am disappointed that I do not feel more energetic. I was expecting to bounce back a little quicker! I began rehab this week and I am sure that will help.

Waiting for the surgery date was the most difficult. The surgery procedure was hard on the family (I was sleeping). Recovery is not always pleasant-but certainly do-able.

It sounds as though the surgery will be the easy part for you. Get feeling better.
Debbie Argetsinger

I had my bicuspid aortic valve replaced 4/2/12 at Duke Hospital. My surgeon was Dr. Milano. I would recommend him and his team. He is not a "chatty" doctor but he knows his stuff. My only complaint with Duke - the food. It could have been better. But the doctors, nurses and staff were great and that's really what was important. I had no complications during the surgery or recovery. I would definitely recommend Duke Hospital!!