Hi all,
My father had chest pain and sometimes felt really tired
also when he lied on his back had some shortness of breathing. We went to see the doctor. Doctors ...Read more
Hi all,
My father had chest pain and sometimes felt really tired
also when he lied on his back had some shortness of breathing. We went to see the doctor. Doctors found out that my father has aortic valve stenosis. They say he needs surgery because the stenosis is huge.
However, now he feels good. There is no so much chest pain.
So there are some questions I would like to ask you from your experience that you had with your doctors...
Isn't there any way to treat the valve stenoses without surgery?
If we don't do surgery what can happen to the heart?
The heart is now in the normal shape they say the heart may enlarge. and the heart muscle may not work as it used to do.
What problems can aortic valve stenoses cause?
How long is the recovery process?
What are the risks of such surgery
Thank you all :)
Catie B Artur, I'm very sorry that your father is unwell. I have been aware of aortic stenosis most of my lif ... Read more
Catie B Artur, I'm very sorry that your father is unwell. I have been aware of aortic stenosis most of my life. My own valve became severely stenotic in 2016 and I had surgery for an aneurysm and to replace my valve.
Once an aortic stenosis reaches the severe stage, usually there are symptoms (as your father experienced). The opening for the blood to come through his valve has become very small and until the valve is replaced, this area will continue to narrow. As the disease progresses, this puts more and more pressure on the heart. If untreated, in time it can lead to heart failure and to death.
The valve must be replaced, to preserve heart function. Ordinarily, this is done through open-heart surgery. But there is also a newer, less invasive technique that some patients qualify for, called TAVR, transcatheter aortic valve replacement. The recovery process for TAVR is very short. For full, surgical aortic valve replacement, recovery is ordinarily several weeks.
The risks and recovery time depend on who performs the surgery and the hospital where it is done, and the recovery time also varies, depending on the health of the patient.
I hope this helps and I hope your father can get the treatment he needs very soon.
Steve Farthing Regarding risk of surgery, if the stenosis is severe, the annual risk of sudden death from it is usua ... Read more
Steve Farthing Regarding risk of surgery, if the stenosis is severe, the annual risk of sudden death from it is usually greater than the mortality risk of surgery. Another problem is that by delaying surgery (assuming surgery is already needed), the risk goes up of needing emergency surgery which has a higher mortality risk. So it is a good idea to plan and research the options urgently.
Bonnie Stone-Hope Hello,
Welcome to the community.
If you go to the "video" section on this website, you can view sever ... Read more
Bonnie Stone-Hope Hello,
Welcome to the community.
If you go to the "video" section on this website, you can view several educational videos on aortic stenosis, which will answer your questions.
I just had a mitral valve repaired in December and have felt very good since the 6 weeks after surgery. My friend had his aortic valve replaced recently, and he feels much better than before the surgery.
Once an aortic stenosis reaches the severe stage, usually there are symptoms (as your father experienced). The opening for the blood to come through his valve has become very small and until the valve is replaced, this area will continue to narrow. As the disease progresses, this puts more and more pressure on the heart. If untreated, in time it can lead to heart failure and to death.
The valve must be replaced, to preserve heart function. Ordinarily, this is done through open-heart surgery. But there is also a newer, less invasive technique that some patients qualify for, called TAVR, transcatheter aortic valve replacement. The recovery process for TAVR is very short. For full, surgical aortic valve replacement, recovery is ordinarily several weeks.
The risks and recovery time depend on who performs the surgery and the hospital where it is done, and the recovery time also varies, depending on the health of the patient.
I hope this helps and I hope your father can get the treatment he needs very soon.
Welcome to the community.
If you go to the "video" section on this website, you can view sever ... Read more
Welcome to the community.
If you go to the "video" section on this website, you can view several educational videos on aortic stenosis, which will answer your questions.
I just had a mitral valve repaired in December and have felt very good since the 6 weeks after surgery. My friend had his aortic valve replaced recently, and he feels much better than before the surgery.