My husband at 63 has been diagnosed with moderate aortic stenosis. He had cardiac catheterization today and Dr said he was at 1.3 cm and is holding off surgery ...Read more
My husband at 63 has been diagnosed with moderate aortic stenosis. He had cardiac catheterization today and Dr said he was at 1.3 cm and is holding off surgery and will do another echogram in 6 months (His first echogram showed severe stenosis). We go back to see him in 2 weeks. I had a lot of questions that were not answered and we didn't see the Dr again today at the hospital for me to ask them.
He has shortness of breath, dizziness and weakness. He cant work in the garden for more than 30 minutes (which is his hobby and he loves), we cant even walk on the beach (we just moved to Florida) because he doesnt have the energy.
The Dr originally told us the echogram showed severe stenosis and he would need surgery so we had prepared ourselves for that but now he is saying to wait 6 months or more since the catheterization showed moderate stenosis
My question is, his quality of life is not good right now so why cant he have the surgery and get better, rather than wait till he is another older and at more risk.
Thanks in advance for any input.
Denise Marks BTW, he had no symptoms until 3 months ago
Phyllis Petersen There have been others who were in a similar situation and pushed to have the surgery sooner rather t ... Read more
Phyllis Petersen There have been others who were in a similar situation and pushed to have the surgery sooner rather than later. Make sure the cardiologists understands that he is symptomatic and that it is negatively impacting his quality of life. Good luck!
Denise Marks Thanks Phyllis. I have a list of questions for him. He does know he is symptomatic and even commente ... Read more
Denise Marks Thanks Phyllis. I have a list of questions for him. He does know he is symptomatic and even commented that it was strange that it hadn't been detected earlier. (we just moved here after living in TN for 20 years)
Peggy Whitecotton You have the right to see a surgeon for a second opinion. When my Arotic stenosis became severe after ... Read more
Peggy Whitecotton You have the right to see a surgeon for a second opinion. When my Arotic stenosis became severe after years of echos showing mild, my cardiologist said come back in 6 months. I too, was symptomatic. I got cd copies of my echos, doctors office notes and saw a surgeon.. He ordered aTEE a heart cath which showed that in a matter of 6 weeks my heart had gone from severe to critical., my heart was failing fast, he said this was a death sentence if I didn't have surgery now. I had my OHS 2 weeks later. The surgeon said he's been trying to educate these cardiologist to not wait so long especially when you start having symptoms. Had I waited my heart could have been damaged, gone into CHF or had heart failure. This surgeon saved my life., it was a hard long recovery for me because my heart was so bad critically.. But it's been 15 months doing great, no heart damage.
Kevin Lee I had my aortic valve replaced on August 16 because of severe stenosis. It sounds like you guys migh ... Read more
Kevin Lee I had my aortic valve replaced on August 16 because of severe stenosis. It sounds like you guys might want to consider getting a second opinion. Find a cardiologist that you are happy with and will be able to answer your questions.
Lilly Black I agree with you! Why wait....it won't get better. Before my surgery I couldn't even walk a full bloc ... Read more
Lilly Black I agree with you! Why wait....it won't get better. Before my surgery I couldn't even walk a full block without stopping several times! my surgeon said let's do it now (Dec 2014). It is scary and I feel for you and your husband. I agree with Kevin, get a second opinion. Good luck! feel free to ask questions.....take care.
Amy Steele Denise, I agree with all the others. The timing of surgery is largely symptom-based. Since your hus ... Read more
Amy Steele Denise, I agree with all the others. The timing of surgery is largely symptom-based. Since your husband is experiencing symptoms that are worrisome, I'd push to have the surgery sooner rather than later. Just my two cents...
Angelo Varrone I had my AVS just over 3 years ago. My doc convinced me to do it sooner rather than later. I had no s ... Read more
Angelo Varrone I had my AVS just over 3 years ago. My doc convinced me to do it sooner rather than later. I had no symptoms, but was about 2 years out from HAVING to have the surgery. He didn't think taking the risk of doing nothing was worth it, especially considering that AVS was definitely in my near future. I'm glad I followed his advice.
Juergen Li Denis - from my own experience your husband will appreciate how much his quality of life will improve ... Read more
Juergen Li Denis - from my own experience your husband will appreciate how much his quality of life will improve after surgery. As all the others have already pointed out - nothing will be gained with waiting. I am glad you are proactive and engaged - good luck!
Darlene Smith I'd get another cardiologist, or just self refer to a heart surgeon who specializes in your husband's ... Read more
Darlene Smith I'd get another cardiologist, or just self refer to a heart surgeon who specializes in your husband's issue. I would not wait. I had 3 TEEs. One said severe regurgitation, one said mod/severe, and the last one was moderate. It just depends on the cardiologist's opinion, and there isn't much in the way of objective measures. If your husband feels that bad, go to a good surgeon now.
Darlene Smith When you said doctor in your post, I wasn't sure if you meant cardiologist or surgeon. But if it was ... Read more
Darlene Smith When you said doctor in your post, I wasn't sure if you meant cardiologist or surgeon. But if it was a surgeon, definitely get a second opinion.
Ray Farmer Hi, I was recently diagnosed with severe aortic stenosis, I had no symptoms until I went up a mountai ... Read more
Ray Farmer Hi, I was recently diagnosed with severe aortic stenosis, I had no symptoms until I went up a mountain and got shortness of breath, dizziness and weakness. Eight weeks on I now get this at sea level. Blood pressure & ECG all normal until Echo Cardio Gram diagnosed severe aortic stenosis. I would get another Echo Cardio Gram. I have been told these things don’t go away if your symptoms interfere with your quality of life that is definitely the time to get surgery.
My husband at 63 has been diagnosed with moderate aortic stenosis. He had cardiac catheterization today and Dr said he was at 1.3 cm and is holding off surgery ...Read more
My husband at 63 has been diagnosed with moderate aortic stenosis. He had cardiac catheterization today and Dr said he was at 1.3 cm and is holding off surgery and will do another echogram in 6 months (His first echogram showed severe stenosis). We go back to see him in 2 weeks. I had a lot of questions that were not answered and we didn't see the Dr again today at the hospital for me to ask them.
He has shortness of breath, dizziness and weakness. He cant work in the garden for more than 30 minutes (which is his hobby and he loves), we cant even walk on the beach (we just moved to Florida) because he doesnt have the energy.
The Dr originally told us the echogram showed severe stenosis and he would need surgery so we had prepared ourselves for that but now he is saying to wait 6 months or more since the catheterization showed moderate stenosis
My question is, his quality of life is not good right now so why cant he have the surgery and get better, rather than wait till he is another older and at more risk.
Thanks in advance for any input.
