About Me (In My Own Words)
My valve journey started 20 years ago. I went to ER and was diagnosed congestive heart failure after I gave birth to my first child. Per doctor my mitral valve couldn’t close and open as normal due to rheumatic fever at my child time.
My mitral valve has been monitored since then. I visit my cardiologist and have Echo once per year. Echo image up to June 2023 showed no big change. My left Atrium is enlarged but left ventricle is in normal size. I was very active and didn’t feel limitation until October 2023.
I had Afib during my international trip then. My lack of knowledge of Afib delayed my visit to my doctor. I thought I caught cold and it would get better itself after a few weeks. However one month later I still felt shortness of breath and couldn’t do normal walking/going upstairs. I finally went to see my family doctor and she sent me to ER right way.
My Afib led to a big blood clot in my heart. I had to wait another two months to be able to get blood clot dissolved and get cardioversion done. I’m back to my normal routine after cardio version. My latest Echo image in March 2024 shows a big improvement vs Afib time and goes back to the same status 10 years ago per my cardiologist. I’m a little surprised by resilience of heart to be recovered within three months ( my heart EF rate was 25% during Afib time)
Tough life with Afib triggered me to seriously consider surgery option. I
consulted three surgeons. One recommended by my cardiologist and other two from recommendation of this community. All three have same opinion that I should get my valve replaced. I like both Dr Steven Bolling at University of Michigan and Dr Gillinov at Cleveland Clinic. Eventually I decided to have surgery locally with Dr Steven Bolling which is more convenient for my family.
I haven’t decided valve option yet. I’m not sure I can be so disciplined on taking blood thinner. Most likely I’ll go with tissue valve, hopefully in 10 year there’ll be valve available with new technology last much longer.
Many thanks to heart warriors in this community to share experiences and support each other!
More Info About Me & My Heart
More About Me
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I am from:
Novi
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My surgery date is:
May 23, 2024
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I was diagnosed with:
Mitral Regurgitation
Mitral Stenosis
Atrial Fibrillation
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My surgery was:
Mitral Valve Replacement
Maze Procedure
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