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Patient Update: Olivia Is Born! Congratulations Sara & Matt!

By Adam Pick on March 30, 2012

Here is a great patient update from Sara. You might recall that the last time we heard from Sara, who has a bicuspid aortic valve, dilated aortic root, and coarctation of the descending aorta, she was newly pregnant with with a baby girl. Well, I have some inspirational news to share directly from Sara. She writes to us:

Olivia Paige Bloomfield

Hi there! I hope you are well. It has been a few months and I wanted to send you an update that I have shared with a few women offline that I connected with via your blog.

In early January, my husband and I made the trip up to snowy Rochester, MN where we waited to deliver our daughter. On January 19th, we delivered our healthy little girl (Olivia Paige) at the Mayo Clinic by C-section. I felt that I was truly in great hands at Mayo. They delivered Olivia in a cardiac OR just to be extra safe in case I needed any intervention. My team of doctors also felt that it was best to deliver by C-section because of my dilated root. When I say 'team,' I truly mean it was a team effort.

My husband counted 19 people in the delivery room at one point, and there was an additional team of cardiac nurses looking on from outside the surgical room window. Other than the large crowd, the surgery was pretty routine. I was able to have an epidural and remain awake for the surgery.

Heart valve patient with daughter and dog

The Bloomfield Family

During my pregnancy, we did experience an increase in valve regurgitation, but the aortic root remained stable. After the delivery, the doctors monitored me very closely and happily my heart returned to its pre-pregnancy state within a few weeks. I will check in with my cardiologist at the 6 month mark this summer for follow-up.

Finally, as you know, heart valve conditions are thought to be familial. Olivia received an echo cardiogram of her heart at 18 weeks gestation and also when she was born. Fortunately, she does not have a bicuspid valve!

Thanks again for the great work on your blog!
-Sara

Keep on tickin' Olivia, Sara and Matt!
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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