Janet's Guestbook

Janet Roberson  Thank you so much, Delise, for reaching out to me. Mine started leaking, minimally, two days after surgery. An echo two months after surgery showed moderate regurgitation. I was so upset! Especially since the surgeon had told me after surgery that it was completely successful. My cardiologist, in consultation with the surgeon, put me on a beta blocker to slow down my heart and lower blood pressure in hopes that the heart will remodel and regurgitation will be less. I have an echo tomorrow and meet with the cardiologist next week. I'm hopeful, but very skeptical at this point. I just wish I had gotten a second opinion before surgery! You are right. There are great surgeons listed on this site. My first choice was the Cleveland Clinic, but I didn't want to travel if I could get the surgery done locally. Wish I had travelled. Will update this after I get an update from the cardiologist next week. I really dread going through heart surgery again. Once was more than enough! I'm so sorry that you had to go through that again. Please keep me posted on how you are doing after your latest surgery. 

Svetlomir Ivanov  Hi, Janet, what is your BP,maybe this is cultprit? Is your BP high? Another reason is not good enough repair - did the surgeon put a new chords, or just made resection to tighten you valve? Which leaflet of the valve was affected - anterior or posterior, which segment of the leaflet?

Delise Becker  Thank you, Janet. I'll keep you posted, and you do the same. I hope your meeting next week with your cardiologist provides you with some answers. I know it is frustrating to have had surgery only to learn that it didn't solve the problem. 

Janet Roberson  I can’t answer all of your questions, Svetlomir, because I don’t know. I was put on a beta blocker to lower my VP and pulse, hoping the heart will remodel and the regurgitation will ease. Will find out this week if that approach worked.

Delise Becker  Deena, I think they did try to explain why the leaflet became stenotic, but I honestly don't remember. I think something was said about the fact that the initial repair included putting a ring around the valve, and my tissue growing around it??? But, that may not be at all accurate. It was just the anterior leaflet that was affected. 

Janet Roberson  My blood pressure is normal, but my heart rate went off the charts and is now controlled by beta blockers. The surgeon's report indicates that he replaced a ruptured chord and did something else with a chord. However, I don't know the specifics since he has chosen not to communicate with me on the surgery and its disappointing outcome.

Delise Becker  Janet, I haven't been on this site for a while, but I am very sorry to hear that your surgeon is being unresponsive. Could your cardiologist give him a call to discuss? It won't hurt to ask. I know my surgeon and cardiologist communicated both before and after my surgery. Asking these two doctors to talk might provide you with the information you need. Best of luck to you!

Janet Roberson  The difficult lesson I learned is that the surgery can seem to eliminate regurgitation entirely. The initial TEE done before they completed the surgery showed no regurgitation. Two days later, an echo showed slight regurgitation. Eleven weeks later, an echo showed moderate regurgitation -- but, a much less forceful flow of blood backward into the left atrium.

I wasn't prepared for those results.


My left ventricle is smaller than it was before surgery and loose chordae (a new condition) are causing some regurgitation, although it's not as bad as it was before surgery. Now, I'm on a course of medical treatment to slow down the heart rate in the hopes that the heart will continue to remodel and the regurgitation will subside even more. I will have another echo in November, hoping that the results are better.

I'm 12 weeks post-op and feeling stronger every week. That's the good news. Also the left ventricle's ejection fraction has returned to normal -- it wasn't where it needed to be at the one month post-op and there was speculation that drugs might be needed to correct that. Fortunately, it corrected itself! Which shows that the heart is a dynamic vessel. In my case, it certainly has done some shape shifting over the past twelve months. 


I wasn't aware that the initial good results could change after surgery. I just knew that Inova has a high success rate for mitral valve repair. The cautionary tale is that it may take a while for that success to fully, or partially, manifest itself.

Good luck! I was overly optimistic about recovery. I was very fit and asymtomatic prior to surgery and thought I would be myself after 12 weeks. Cardiac rehab at the Fairfax Hospital has been highly beneficial and I've been able to shave lots of minutes off of the miles I'm hiking. At this point, restrictions have been lifted and I'm doing weight training and I'm back in the pool swimming laps. The nutritionist in rehab was a great resource.

Inova is the hospital designated as a center of excellence for mitral valve in the DC area. I'm glad I had my surgery there. 

I guess my only advice is that you ask about possible outcomes so you are prepared for multiple scenarios!

J Alexander Lassally  Hi Janet - Thank you so much for this excellent explanation.  You have made a great recovery and I really like your stepwise recovery. Great job!   

You mentioned the longer chord (chordae).  Do you and Dr Sarin think this chordae issue could contribute to the moderate MR then, post surgery?   

How did you find the first two weeks - post recovery? I recall you mentioning needing help at first when I read back. I think I will need to line this up. 

Was INOVA impressive for the ICU and Step down care? Always happy to chat further - and I thank you sincerely for this.   J A. 

Janet Roberson  Dr. Sarin didn't respond to my messages asking why there was moderate regurgitation after he had declared the surgery results excellent. He speaks only with my cardiologist and dropped me like a hot potato once the echocardiogram showed significant problems. The cardiologist, after repeated questions from me, finally acknowledged that the loose chordae are causing the regurgitation now. I would not recommend Inova for heart surgery. 

Janet Roberson  I'm sorry that I didn't get back to you sooner, James. I hope your surgery was a success! My recovery was slow, but steady initially. However, it has not been what I expected since the surgery was not successful. The surgeon, Dr. Sarin, declared the surgery results excellent and took a victory lap. Two days after surgery, an echocardiogram showed slight regurgitation. Another echo, three months after surgery, showed moderate regurgitation and loose chordae. I messaged Dr. Sarin to get more information about this and possible ramifications. I got silence. He has never responded to me. My cardiologist claims that Dr. Sarin talks with him and that they still think the operation was a success. I don't concur. I'm on beta blockers (which cause fatigue and weight gain, among other side effects) to slow down the heart rate and regurgitation. It's possible that I will need another surgery, but both doctors avoid discussing that. I feel like a sword is hanging over my head. I would not recommend Inova for cardiac surgery. 

Janet Roberson  Day Two after surgery is so much better! My color has returned and I was allowed to have a cup of coffee and breakfast. I even snatched a few hours of sleep last night — quite a feat in a hospital. The PT’s took me on a walk around the perimeter of the ICU. That was great. My surgeon is very happy with the progress I’m making. Every hour is a bit different and there are improvements. It’s a process and takes some patience. I’m happy I decided to have the procedure while I was asymptomatic and fit. It’s easier than if you wait for symptoms which make every day activities difficult. Thanks for your support — it’s inspiring!

Janet Roberson  Thank you so much! My surgery went well and m mitral valve was repaired! I’m in the ICU — it hasn’t  been easy. I’m taking one step at a time and feeling better now than last night. I was able to walk a short distance - a milestone. 

Susan Lynn  Yay, Janet! Glad you were able to get a repair! Welcome to recovery!! Sounds like you're doing great already! Please keep us posted!

Janet Roberson  Thanks, Richard. I appreciate your good wishes and have great confidence in my surgeon. Inova Heart and Vascular Institute has been designated by the AHA as a Mitral Valve Repair Reference Center, among other awards. I don't think I could be in better hands in my geographic location.

Richard Munson  What i am going to tell you is a given, As you get closer to d day, or d moment, you are going to become more and more nervous. After all, its your heart. My point: its all normal so don’t feel alone in your feelings. I won’t bore you how chicken richard tried to back out up until they put me to sleep but rest assured it was not pretty.

Janet Roberson  Unfortunately, the surgeon couldn't deliver on his promises. He declared the surgery results "excellent", but loose chordae are causing moderate regurgitation. The surgeon didn't respond to any of my requests for information. The cardiologist says I'm doing great. They are evasive and are not forthcoming about the new problems that emerged post surgery. I would not recommend Inova for heart surgery.

Janet Roberson  Thank you so much, Terrie! That's great advice. I have just a bit more than 24 hours until surgery. During that time, I'm going to come up with one or more experiences that make me feel joy. I appreciate your kind thoughts and wishes for me. 

Terrie Syvertsen  Good morning JanetI have a feeling that you will find after surgery,all the fear was not as bad as what led up to it! Your'e  going to be so relieved and heading to recovery!

Trygve Harris  Hi Janet. I just had a mitral valve replaced....3 1/2 weeks ago. Honestly the anticipation is scarier.  For sure it's a big surgery but think about how often they do these and the fact that the entire cardiac surgery team is trained specifically for that. The nurses are cardiac surgery nurses, everyone involved is specialized in cardiac surgery--they do it every day. Try not to think too much about the  actual surgery and trust your team. I can breathe now. It's the surgery and it's shocking. You will likely feel like a new person. Best of luck.

David Seligman  I'm also a big fan of visualization and imagery to calm your inner self. Focus on what YOU can control! You will be surrounded by an amazing and dedicated team of specialists and experts in their field, you got this

Amy Payjack  Good luck Janet. Know you're in the best hands possible. There's dozens of well trained people involved in your surgery to make sure everything goes as well as possible. Some EFT Tapping can really help if you've heard of it or have time to look it up. It really saved me after my surgery when the pain and anxiety was bad. Even just Tapping on the points without saying anything helps. There's videos to follow on YouTube "Tapping for anxiety/pain"  good luck!