Cindy's Posts

Hello everyone, March 6th I had my 6 month post op with my cardiologist, all continues to be great so not much to discuss :) He once again said what a great job my surgeon, Dr. Accola did! He is so right, and Dr. Accola was also compassionate, personal, informative and confident, he is the best! But, I don't forget that it started with my primary care Dr. who noticed the murmur and referred me to a cardiologist. I was referred around 14 years ago and have seen the same cardiologist since, I have always thanked him for being so attentive and proactive with my murmur, especially last year when he explained that I needed surgery. I feel very fortunate as he may have saved my life and definitely being proactive allowed my surgeon to repair my MV. My next appointment is October for an echo, he said he doesn't need to see me until March 2019, I guess he is confident the echo results will be good ;) I am still amazed and so happy that I have been back to my active lifestyle since December playing tennis 4-5 days/week with my traveling tennis leagues. Hopefully my experience will give comfort to those with upcoming surgeries. I had some bumps in the recovery road but once I got through those all continued to progress to where I am today. I wish all with upcoming surgeries to have a successful surgery and a comfortable recovery. Best wishes to you all!!

Hello everyone, my last update was a little vague, I was withholding details so not to add concern to anyone still scheduled for surgery. But I have been back to 100% and feel amazing! I will try to be short and precise. - I wanted to have minimally invasive but my surgeon explained OHS is the best for access and especially if there are any surprises. - My surgeon said my repair was more complicated than expected but he repaired it 100%! (thank goodness I had OHS!) - I was on by-pass for 1 hour - My blood would not clot, it took quite a bit of transfusions and 5 meds including fresh frozen plasm to clot and then it was normal after every test - Once home I saw a hematologist 3 times and all continued to be normal - I remember the breathing tube being removed, I did not like that. - Because I was in surgery so long I retained fluid so I was put on Lasix for 2 days then had the last bit removed by needle. - when the PT nurse came in to check me out, she asked me to lift my legs, my right leg moved up just fine, but I couldn't lift my left leg! I thought I was paralyzed! But my leg was stuck under the leg massaging tube, lol! - I had a lot pain, I was told because of my small frame (115 lbs) my body would be more sensitive to the surgery. - I was in ICU 3 days and was released 7 days after surgery - 1.5 weeks after I was home I went to the ER with pain like no other, after a CT and echo it was determined i had pericarditis, i was put on prednisone for a week - The 4th day after i finished the prednisone i was back in the hospital, pericarditis was not gone. My cardiologist put me on a prednisone for 2.5 months. He said we need to get rid of this once and for all or it could return. It worked and it never returned! - I began cardio rehab 5.5 weeks after surgery, I loved this program: it's a gym filled with 12 nurses, cardio PT's, flat screen tvs, you wear a halter and are monitored every second you are there. They communicate with your cardiologist. I went 3 days a week for 10 weeks, it was so nice to be with other patients, share stories and make friends and exercise knowing I was being monitored every second. I highly recommend cardio rehab! - I am so happy I had the surgery, the rest of my heart is healthy, no medications to take (baby aspirin) - I went back to tennis (slowly) 3.5 months after surgery :) fyi- i slept in a recliner for the first few days I was home - my surgeon did a mini-sternontomy, I can wear low V-neck tops :) For those who have upcoming surgeries, i wish you a successful surgery and recovery!