Hello friends. I'm so glad a community like this exists. I am posting actually on behalf of my mom. She is 77, about 5 feet tall, and 90 pounds. She's extremely active, loves dancing, gardening, and zipping around town in her new electric car. Unfortunately, she's recently experienced shortness of breath and a few other symptoms and has been diagnosed with severe degenerative MR, with P2 leaflet flail has been referred to surgery.
I actually work in the heart valve space (on the TAVR side) and know what a difference valve repair or replacement can make on a patient, but it is important to me that find the right procedure (and doctor) for my mom.
That said, we just had our consult with her surgeon yesterday and it did not go as hoped. The surgeon only performs mitral repair via full sternotomy and given her age and size, I worry about her recovery. I would like to explore minimally invasive options (mini-thoracotomy) or even robotic assisted surgery and if those do not pan out, a transcatheter option such as Mitraclip. But here's the rub... my mom is part of the Kaiser network in Southern California and I worry that she will not have all options available to her, or surgeons with experience in those less invasive procedures. Will Kaiser be able to offer her a minimally invasive option? If they do not, will Kaiser refer out to another hospital that does?
We will be working all angles, but would love to hear experiences from others that may have gone through the same thing. Thank you!
(below is a picture of my mom and my youngest daughter )
Tom Everson Hi At least two patients on this site have posted about Kaiser in Hollywood ( on Sunset) Give the ho ... Read more
Tom Everson Hi At least two patients on this site have posted about Kaiser in Hollywood ( on Sunset) Give the hospital a call and ask your questions 833. 574- 2273. That is nice of you to seek out the best options for your Mom. Good Luck
Daniel Sun Thanks Tom. We have been working with Kaiser and we met with a surgeon there. They unfortunately do n ... Read more
Daniel Sun Thanks Tom. We have been working with Kaiser and we met with a surgeon there. They unfortunately do not offer a minimally invasive mitral repair surgery.
Rose Madura Your Mom looks so sweet and it's so nice of you to help her! I'm sorry I'm not able to help with yo... Read more
Rose Madura Your Mom looks so sweet and it's so nice of you to help her! I'm sorry I'm not able to help with your question but I'm sure other hear warriors will chime in. Tom has a good suggestion, call and tell them just what you told us. It's good to get a 2nd opinion regardless. Please keep us updated.
Susan Lynn Daniel - I had minimally invasive mitral valve and chord repairs and I highly recommend it if you ca... Read more
Susan Lynn Daniel - I had minimally invasive mitral valve and chord repairs and I highly recommend it if you can figure out the insurance. I'm guessing your mother has a Medicare supplemental plan, so you might want to consider switching carriers when her enrollment comes up. Most mitral valve issues aren't immediately life threatening, so that may be an option. Please let me know if I can answer any questions about the procedure. Best of luck!
Hi Daniel welcome to our site. You are a good son. Your mommy is beautiful and looks so young. I agre ... Read more
Hi Daniel welcome to our site. You are a good son. Your mommy is beautiful and looks so young. I agree with Susan Lynn, I’m familiar with Kaiser and know she probably doesn’t have a Medicare Supplemental Insurance attached to it, but if you can wait or if she has Extra Help she can switch to straight Medicare and buy a supplemental insurance to cover a lot of expenses Medicare does not. This way you can either go to another Hospital where the minimally repair can be done. Where does she live? Anyway, hoping for you to find the right surgeon and medical team that is best for her. God bless you
Kenneth Southard My understanding about Kaiser is that they operate like a bell-shaped curve where they handle about 8 ... Read more
Kenneth Southard My understanding about Kaiser is that they operate like a bell-shaped curve where they handle about 80% of whatever can happen to a person in house and do refer out for things that are outside of their wheelhouse. What I don't know are to what is their criteria for referral and to what choices you have in who you are referred to.
Tom Everson Hi again. The Kaiser in Santa Clara has a Percutaneous Mitral Valve repair option. For more informa ... Read more
Tom Everson Hi again. The Kaiser in Santa Clara has a Percutaneous Mitral Valve repair option. For more information google Structual Heart Program. Or call 408-851-3709. M/F. 8:00-4:30. If you can convince them to give you a referral you will probably have to absorb the transportation costs. I live in Orange co , calif but a born New Yorker ( you have to continue to fight for your Mom)
Ginny Turner Hi Daniel. Beautiful pictures of your mom and daughter! I'm in my mid-70s, active and in good health ... Read more
Ginny Turner Hi Daniel. Beautiful pictures of your mom and daughter! I'm in my mid-70s, active and in good health and had mitral and tricuspid repairs 5 months ago via full sternotomy at the Cleveland Clinic. No problems in surgery or recovery and very little pain afterwards. However, it's worth exploring your options for minimally invasive surgery. In Los Angeles, Dr. Joanna Chikwe is highly regarded and an expert in the field of robotic surgery. You can read more about her at the link below. Best of luck to your mom! Dr. Joanna Chikwe - Heart Surgeon in Los Angeles, California (heart-valve-surgery.com)
See patient reviews, physician biography, videos and contact information for Dr. Joanna Chikwe, heart surgeon, in Los Angeles, California.
Deena Elani Daniel, while your mom looks like a young 77, I understand why you would her to have the least invasive procedure and the best surgeon. Here are a few next steps, which you are probably already doing and is in sync with what others above has also shared:
1) Ask for an exception for Kaiser to go-out-of-network, due to "risk" with a full sternum procedure. Her cardiologist and/or the surgeon you went to would have to agree there is "risk", at minimum. It would not necessarily be risk to her life, but risk to a fully functional recovery. Of course, Kaiser may only refer to you to another in-state hospital that does perform the minimally-invasive surgery. So, check-out all those surgeons out. Tom, above, provided contact info for one! If this becomes the only viable route, then check out the outcome stats for these Kaiser-employed surgeons, particularly the volume of minimally invasive surgeries performed. It's not just low mortality rates (less than 1 percent, adjusted for age) that you are seeking, but a low percent of post surgery strokes, infections, and hospital re-admissions. The surgeon's office and/or hospital collects this data.
Deena Elani Daniel, while your mom looks like a young 77, I understand why you would her to have the least invasive procedure and the best surgeon. Here are a few next steps, which you are probably already doing and is in sync with what others above has also shared:
1) Ask for an exception for Kaiser to go-out-of-network, due to "risk" with a full sternum procedure. Her cardiologist and/or the surgeon you went to would have to agree there is "risk", at minimum. It would not necessarily be risk to her life, but risk to a fully functional recovery. Of course, Kaiser may only refer to you to another in-state hospital that does perform the minimally-invasive surgery. So, check-out all those surgeons out. Tom, above, provided contact info for one! If this becomes the only viable route, then check out the outcome stats for these Kaiser-employed surgeons, particularly the volume of minimally invasive surgeries performed. It's not just low mortality rates (less than 1 percent, adjusted for age) that you are seeking, but a low percent of post surgery strokes, infections, and hospital re-admissions. The surgeon's office and/or hospital collects this data.
2. As Ginny states, Dr. Chikwe has an impressive, well established reputation as a renowned mitral valve surgeon AND does minimally invasive. If you call her office, they can refer you to their insurance dept and this dept can tell you if they have had any success with obtaining out-of-network insurance from Kaiser.
3. As Ana and Susan say, you can switch to the usual Medicare A and B plan, if your mom is okay with the wait. If you really like Kaiser, you always switch back after one year.:)
I actually work in the heart valve space (on the TAVR side) and know what a difference valve repair or replacement can make on a patient, but it is important to me that find the right procedure (and doctor) for my mom.
That said, we just had our consult with her surgeon yesterday and it did not go as hoped. The surgeon only performs mitral repair via full sternotomy and given her age and size, I worry about her recovery. I would like to explore minimally invasive options (mini-thoracotomy) or even robotic assisted surgery and if those do not pan out, a transcatheter option such as Mitraclip. But here's the rub... my mom is part of the Kaiser network in Southern California and I worry that she will not have all options available to her, or surgeons with experience in those less invasive procedures. Will Kaiser be able to offer her a minimally invasive option? If they do not, will Kaiser refer out to another hospital that does?
We will be working all angles, but would love to hear experiences from others that may have gone through the same thing. Thank you!
(below is a picture of my mom and my youngest daughter
1) Ask for an exception for Kaiser to go-out-of-network, due to "risk" with a full sternum procedure. Her cardiologist and/or the surgeon you went to would have to agree there is "risk", at minimum. It would not necessarily be risk to her life, but risk to a fully functional recovery.
Of course, Kaiser may only refer to you to another in-state hospital that does perform the minimally-invasive surgery. So, check-out all those surgeons out. Tom, above, provided contact info for one! If this becomes the only viable route, then check out the outcome stats for these Kaiser-employed surgeons, particularly the volume of minimally invasive surgeries performed. It's not just low mortality rates (less than 1 percent, adjusted for age) that you are seeking, but a low percent of post surgery strokes, infections, and hospital re-admissions. The surgeon's office and/or hospital collects this data.
... Read more
1) Ask for an exception for Kaiser to go-out-of-network, due to "risk" with a full sternum procedure. Her cardiologist and/or the surgeon you went to would have to agree there is "risk", at minimum. It would not necessarily be risk to her life, but risk to a fully functional recovery.
Of course, Kaiser may only refer to you to another in-state hospital that does perform the minimally-invasive surgery. So, check-out all those surgeons out. Tom, above, provided contact info for one! If this becomes the only viable route, then check out the outcome stats for these Kaiser-employed surgeons, particularly the volume of minimally invasive surgeries performed. It's not just low mortality rates (less than 1 percent, adjusted for age) that you are seeking, but a low percent of post surgery strokes, infections, and hospital re-admissions. The surgeon's office and/or hospital collects this data.
2. As Ginny states, Dr. Chikwe has an impressive, well established reputation as a renowned mitral valve surgeon AND does minimally invasive. If you call her office, they can refer you to their insurance dept and this dept can tell you if they have had any success with obtaining out-of-network insurance from Kaiser.
3. As Ana and Susan say, you can switch to the usual Medicare A and B plan, if your mom is okay with the wait. If you really like Kaiser, you always switch back after one year.:)