About Me (In My Own Words)
I am 19 years old and have known about my bicuspid aortic valve since birth. After contracting Covid last fall, I needed clearance from my cardiologist to return to playing college baseball. The MRI results showed that the regurgitation had increased to the point where intervention was required. My parents and I had been worried about this day for my entire young life, and now in Feb 2022 it had arrived.
We began asking a ton of questions and scouring the internet on the procedure, options, and surgeons. My parents and I interviewed a lot of surgeons but didn’t feel we were quite there with a decision. The more surgeons we interviewed; the more questions came up with each surgeon offering their unique approach to the procedure. Our goals were (1) to avoid Coumadin if possible, and (2) to gravitate towards a surgeon who didn’t open me up and need to see my stomach in order to work on the top half of my heart.
After an exhaustive search, we found Dr. Luis Castro and Sequoia Hospital on this website while looking through the reviews. We were amazed at the stories and feedback and thought we need to give him a call for one last interview before making the decision. It was the best call we’ve ever made.
After our first call we were convinced Dr. Castro was the choice. He was very thorough and knowledgeable and most importantly, very empathetic and kind. We went through many Zoom calls to make sure we understood everything about the procedure and what our options were.
Once we made the decision official, the team at Dr. Castro’s office and those at Sequoia Hospital were amazing and really helped to make sure we were well informed and comfortable with the decisions we had to make. His first goal was to repair the valve, but if that was not possible the decision was made to use an artificial valve and just deal with the ramifications of Coumadin for the rest of my life.
One the day of the surgery, my parents escorted me to the surgical prep ward where I was prepped for the surgery. The nursing staff was very kind and put us all at ease. That is the last I remember before waking up in the ICU.
My parents waited in the surgical waiting room for a few hours while Dr. Castro performed a small miracle on my heart. He was able to actually repair my bicuspid aortic valve! Dr. Castro visited us later in the ICU to let us know about the operation (I was still a bit groggy, so this story is relayed from my parents).
Dr. Castro took my case very personal and challenged himself to find a way to repair my valve. Most patients he cares for with this operation are much older and the long-term effects of Coumadin aren’t as impactful as they would be for me. He said he took this challenge to heart and got up earlier than usual and researched previous case studies in preparation for the surgery. The cardiologist who came to visit (and is now my full-time cardiologist) told us she wanted to see the miracle patient with the repaired valve! She told us there are only a handful of surgeons in the world who could have pulled this off, and Dr. Castro is one of them!
Dr. Castro came to see me every day in the recovery ward and was so kind. The hospital staff at Sequoia was also very kind and helpful and made my parents as comfortable as possible. I’m 5 months into my 6-month recovery at this point and everything is going fantastic. I’m allowed to do light workouts and I’m feeling stronger every day.
I can’t thank Dr. Castro and the team at Sequoia Hospital in Redwood City enough for providing me with a new lease on life!
More Info About Me & My Heart
More About Me
-
I am from:
Placerville, CA
-
My surgery date is:
June 9, 2022
-
I was diagnosed with:
Bicuspid Aortic Valve
Aortic Aneurysm
-
My surgery was:
Aortic Valve Repair
Aortic Aneurysm Replacement
-
My surgeon is:
Dr. Luis Castro
-
