Laurent's Guestbook

Hi Laurent,

I am 50 y.o. and active in sport.I have Mitral valve repair on 14 Sept. 2023: minimali invasive, 5 sm. insicion trough right side of the ...Read more

Laurent,



If you are having your surgery in Paris, the Mitral Foundation web page might still provide you some useful information in what to look ...Read more

Laurent,

I had never even been close to being in a hospital.  The sickest I had ever been was with the cold or flu so when I learned that I needed heart surgery it just seemed impossible especially given that I was asymptomatic.  I just tried not to think about it because I was overcome with anxiety when I did.  I didn’t fully accept that it was real until the night before the surgery.



Perhaps the most important thing you can do (if you have not found the web page already) is research the Mitral Foundation (mitralfoundation.org) Reference Surgeons and Reference Centers.  From the Mitral Foundation web page look at Find a Recognized Center which will list all of the Reference Centers and the Reference Surgeon/s at those Centers.  The requirements to be named a Reference Surgeon and Reference Center are very specific.  Also look at Reference Center Qualifications.  You’ll find a surgeon who not only does a lot of this type of surgery each year so they have dealt with many nuances but must has a proven record for outcomes.



The first Reference Surgeon I contacted was very experienced but left me feeling like nothing more than a number.   There are many Reference Surgeons but Joanna Chikwe was the one for me because I could tell during the consultation that my emotional wellbeing was just important to her as my physical wellbeing.