Adam's Heart Valve Surgery Blog – Page 2

Since launching the Surgeon Finder at HeartValveSurgery.com, I have moderated thousands of patient reviews for heart surgeons.  I downright love seeing patients celebrate their surgeons.

Andy Teel (Aortic Valve Replacement Patient)

Interestingly… Andy Teel, a minimally-invasive aortic valve replacement patient of Dr. Neelan Doolabh, just did something extraordinary.  As you can watch below, Andy sent me our first-ever “5-Star Video Review” about his experience with Dr. Doolabh and the entire UT Southwestern team.

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Post-operative AFib is a BIG PROBLEM that impacts up to 30% of heart surgery patients. For that reason, I was very interested to learn about an innovative, new clinical trial evaluating the CardiaMend patch for the prevention of post-op AFib.  To get the details about the CardiaMend clinical trial, click here to see my new interview with Dr. Robert Saeid Farivar.

Many thanks to Dr. Farivar, Saint Alphonsus Health and Helios Cardio for their work on this clinical trial!

Keep on tickin!
Adam

If you have just been told that you need heart surgery, it is VERY COMMON to experience the emotions of anxiety and fear.

To help you, I just met with Dr. Marc Gillinov, Chairman of Cardiac Surgery at Cleveland Clinic, to learn what three facts he shares with patients BEFORE heart surgery to help them manage their fear and anxiety.  Click here to see Dr. Gillinov dispel patient anxiety and fear before heart surgery.

Many thanks to Dr. Marc Gillinov for sharing his clinical experiences and research with our patient community!

Keep on tickin,
Adam

After being diagnosed with bicuspid aortic valve disease, patients often wonder if there are medications or drugs that can treat this common congenital form of heart disease that impacts up to 2% of the population. For example, Tina just asked me, “Hi Adam – Is there any medicine for the treatment of a leaking bicuspid aortic valve?”

To answer Tina’s questions and educate you about the use of medications for bicuspid aortic valves, I connected with Dr. Luis Castro.  As you may know, Dr. Castro is a leading heart valve surgeon who has successfully treated over 200 patients in the HeartValveSurgery.com community.  To see my interview with Dr. Castro about bicuspid aortic valves, drugs and medications, click here.

Many thanks to Tina for her question and Dr. Castro for taking the time to share his clinical expertise and research with our community!!!

Keep on tickin!
Adam

As more-and-more patients are asking me questions about tricuspid valve disease, I want to relay encouraging news that recently came out of Euro PCR about the non-invasive TriClip device. The TriClip, which is being evaluated for safety and effectiveness in the bRIGHT Clinical Trial, is the first percutaneous device designed specifically for tricuspid heart valve failure.

 
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I am very excited to announce that Baptist Health Paducah just became the newest sponsor of HeartValveSurgery.com.

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New medical advances are transforming the patient recovery from heart surgery.  As a result, patients are experiencing less-to-no pain, staying in the hospital shorter, and getting back to normal activity faster.

To learn about the latest innovations in patient recovery, we interviewed Dr. Marc Gerdisch, Chief of Cardiac Surgery at Franciscan Health in Indianapolis, Indiana.  Dr. Gerdisch has performed over 6,000 cardiac procedures and successfully treated over 100 patients from our community. Click here to see my interview with Dr. Gerdisch about the Rapid Recovery Protocol 2.0.

 
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Minimally-invasive techniques for mitral valve surgery continue to be a key interest for our patient community. For example, Lee just asked me, “Hi, Adam – I am under the impression that surgeons who use minimally-invasive techniques are treating primary mitral regurgitation. What is the suggested treatment when severe mitral regurgitation is secondary due to an enlarged atrium and there is also tricuspid regurgitation?”

It’s a great question. To provide Lee an expert response, I interviewed Dr. Arman Arghami, a leading robotic mitral valve surgeon from Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. To see my interview about minimally-invasive surgery for mitral regurgitation, click here.

Thanks to Lee, Dr. Arghami & Mayo Clinic!

Many thanks to Lee for his question and a special thanks to Dr. Arman Arghami for sharing his insights, research and clinical experiences specific to less-invasive approaches for treating mitral regurgitation.

Keep on tickin!
Adam

As a follow-up to our post, “Ozaki Procedure: New Research for Aortic Valve Patients”, I wanted to share the wonderful patient story of Ray Poole from New York. Ray is an aortic valve patient and chemical engineer who recently underwent the Ozaki Procedure.

Ray Poole (12 Weeks After Ozaki Procedure) with Wife

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While Peloton instructors are known for giving fun and empowering “shout-outs” during their fitness classes… I’m happy to flip-that-script and offer a shout-out to Ally Love, Emma Lovewell, Matt Wilpers, Robin Arzon, and the entire Peloton team for their support of our community!

 
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I just received a great question from Paige about the Ozaki Procedure.  Paige asked me, “Hi, Adam. I’m 29-years-old and I have a bicuspid aortic valve. I also have an aneurysm. I’m thinking about starting a family in the next few years. After meeting with three different cardiac surgeons, I was offered a newer technique as an alternative to a tissue or mechanical valve. That technique is the Ozaki Procedure. What is the latest update about this procedure?”

To learn more, I just interviewed Dr. Douglas Johnston, the Chief of Cardiac Surgery at Northwestern Medicine in Chicago, Illinois, who has performed over 3,000 heart valve repair and replacement operations.  Click here to see my interview with Dr. Johnston about the Ozaki Procedure.

 
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I am very excited to announce that Georgia Heart Institute in Gainesville, Georgia just became the newest sponsor of HeartValveSurgery.com!

 
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Are you ready to go inside the operating room of Dr. Marc Gerdisch, Chief of Cardiac Surgery at Franciscan Health, to learn about the different “faces” of mitral valve disease?

Click here to see how Dr. Gerdisch treats mitral valve disease using traditional and complex therapies to address malformed leaflets, infection, endocarditis and compromised annular structures. 

 
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Patients needing an aortic valve replacement due to stenosis, regurgitation and/or a bicuspid aortic valve might be shocked to learn new research that heart valve replacement devices may not be properly sizes when implanted during surgery. As a result, the patient may not get the full benefit of a properly sized heart valve and the patient may need an accelerated reoperation due to device failure.

For these important reasons, Dr. Bo Yang, a leading cardiac surgeon at Michigan Medicine, developed the Y-Incision Annular Enlargement Procedure. I was very fortunate to interview Dr. Yang about his new, novel approach to helping patients. Click here to see my interview with Dr. Yang about the Y-Incision Annular Enlargement Procedure.

Many thanks to Dr. Yang for developing and educating our patient community about the Y-Incision Annular Enlargement Procedure!

Keep on tickin!
Adam

I am excited and honored to announce that Dr. Marc Gillinov just received his 100th patient testimonial from patients in the HeartValveSurgery.com community!

Dr. Gillinov is the Chairman of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery at the Cleveland Clinic. He is one of the most committed, dedicated and patient-centric heart surgeons I know.  So you know, Dr. Gillinov was one of the first surgeons to support and encourage the educational initiatives of HeartValveSurgery.com.  I’ll never forget our first meeting when Dr. Gillinov said to me, “Adam, I really appreciate how you are helping patients. Education is critical for patients with heart valve disease.”

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Help! Please! It’s Urgent!

If you didn’t know, patients with heart valve disease are up to 35% more likely to experience atrial fibrillation (AFib) which can increase their stroke risk by 5 times, according to the American Heart Association. Unfortunately, AFib is not treated in up to 70% of heart valve procedures. Yikes!!!

 
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Our recent webinar, “Ask Dr. Gerdisch Anything”, was amazing! During the webinar, Dr. Marc Gerdisch, Chief of Cardiac Surgery at Franciscan Health, answered patient questions in a unique interactive format that we have never done before.

You can now access all the insights shared during the webinar via video and a free eBook.

 
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[May 25, 2023 Update: The “Ask Dr. Gerdisch Anything” webinar was fantastic!  In case you missed it, you can now watch the webinar video playback at this link.]

Given all the advances in heart valve disease therapy, patients can be confused about their diagnosis and their treatment options. For this reason, we are hosting a special FREE and LIVE webinar that will provide you a unique opportunity to ask your questions to Dr. Marc Gerdisch, Chief of Cardiac Surgery at Franciscan Health. Dr. Gerdisch is a world-renowned expert who has performed over 4,000 heart valve operations.

This is going to be great! I look forward to seeing you on this interactive webinar!

Keep on tickin,
Adam

At the recent Mitral Conclave conference, I received a great question from Mark about heart valve surgery risk, mortality and age. In his email, Mark asked me, “Hi Adam, I am 87 years old. I’ve had an aortic valve replacement in July. I then needed a MitraClip in October. Now, I have been diagnosed with severe mitral valve regurgitation again. I am investigating less-invasive surgical treatments. I feel like I’m a walking time bomb. Do you have any data on mortality for age groups?”

To answer Mark’s question, I was very fortunate to interview Dr. Marc Gerdisch, the Chief of Cardiac Surgery at Franciscan Health in Indianapolis, Indiana, who has successfully treated over 125 patients in our community. Here’s the highlights from our discussion.

 
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The patient stories in our Community never cease to amaze and inspire me. For example, this is the story of Andy Dial and David Seligman.

David Seligman & Andy Dial (Heart Valve Surgery Patients)

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