Hi all,
I\'m writing for my Dad.
last post was 1/8/13
we have been traveling down this road for a few years now. My Dad\'s cardiologist in Hyannis, Dr C. ( ...Read more
Hi all,
I\'m writing for my Dad.
last post was 1/8/13
we have been traveling down this road for a few years now. My Dad\'s cardiologist in Hyannis, Dr C. ( the father ) has done all he can for my Dad and so knowing where this road was slowly leading him my Dad chose to travel the path ( up to now ) less traveled and went to Boston last November for a consult on a \"TAVI\" trans-catheter aortic valve implantation.
In December he had all the test... angiogram,blood work, urine, CT, MRI, X-ray etc. He passed all except for bacteria hiding in the roots of his teeth. This caused his up January scheduled \"TAVI\" to be put off.
since then:
on 1/29/13 My Dad has had a number of teeth extracted so to clear him from any bacteria that somehow could effect the valves of the heart. A wonderful and gifted doctor, Dr Lane, from Sandwich/Plymouth did the work. ( A plug: if ever you find yourself in need of an extraction and a door-nob with a string tied to it cause you a moment of doubt... then he\'s you man.) another plug: ( Dr Lynch, a dentist, of Dennis is now in the process of making my Dad\'s new choppers... ( just the uppers, the bottoms are fine...) and Dr Lynch is also gentle/kind/gifted and exacting precise. Most likely he could have been a heart surgeon but I surmise he likes to be close to the links.
Long stories made smaller on 2/26/13 Dr Lane gave dad the okay... no bacteria present and healing nicely: this info faxed to Brigham & Women\'s Hospital. Hence Date has now been set: Thursday 3/14/13 Dad arrives for pre-op with the op on the next day Friday 3/15/13... \"the ides\" but we choose to focus on 3/17, St Pats!
Wondering if we can pre-order a Kelley-green hospital gown.
That\'s it for now. I\'m a little nervous for my Dad even though I have trust/faith in his Docs and nurses and all that make this possible.
\"fighting Tigers\"... in the end of the last post was metaphorical speak ... they are endangered and we are saddened by that ... and heartened by William Blake\'s ...Read more
\"fighting Tigers\"... in the end of the last post was metaphorical speak ... they are endangered and we are saddened by that ... and heartened by William Blake\'s \"the Tiger.\"
Some have asked about how they are going to replace my Dad\'a aortic valve. Here is a link that explains all:
Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement (TAVR) - YouTube
I think you will not be able to click on above but will have to copy it and enter it into a search engine like google. The above video should answer all your questions.
Because of my Dad\'s age he is considered to be at too high a risk for open heart surgery But because of his general good health and physical make-up and he has an expectancy to live longer than one year he is a good candidate for this \"TAVI\" or percutaneous aortic valve replacement.
There are risks but they are low and without this procedure my Dad would slowly succumb to heart failure. This past year I can see a noted difference as relative to his stamina and mental acuity ...
They offer this procedure to my Dad and folk like him not to prolong life but to \"enhance\" the quality of life.
And even though my Dad is 93 plus his days have always been full with doings. It was never a surprise to see him transplanting major shrubs and bushes... even small trees, moving ninety pound stones and boulders from one part of his yard to another... this past year he put in and then harvested a respectable variety of vegetable for the table and winter storage. He loves his gardens and constantly tends them. In season cut flowers their fragrance and colors fill up the inside of the house. He still drives, does carpentry, just installed a one inch ball valve in the main copper water feed to his house ... no leaks now... he is an artist like Churchill... painting landscapes and marines when the weather is lousy, enjoys his neighbors of all ages, yells at the knuckleheads on TV and loves a good read as well as a tall story. He would like another year to do it all over again.
as far as risk I worry more over his up coming dental extractions...
this heart procedure is serious work but I have great faith in all the doctors and nurses and techies who over the months we have come in contact with...
if there be Angels then these wonderful people surely stand beside them.
He says: Hi to all.
He was schedule for his aortic valve replacement last week BUT he did not get past the dentist.
My Dad is a ww2 Marine. He is 93 and counting. ...Read more
He says: Hi to all.
He was schedule for his aortic valve replacement last week BUT he did not get past the dentist.
My Dad is a ww2 Marine. He is 93 and counting. A large number of years ago a dentist \"forgot\" to put a post in so to anchor a tooth to the jaw. Ever since my Dad has become his own dentist. Alas his practicing without a certificate although valiant did not prove victorious over bacteria.
AS previously explained in post of 12/28/12
he needed to get x-rays of his teeth before his op could go forward.
The recent x-rays of his teeth showed some infection on their roots. HE Now needs to have some teeth extracted before he can get a clean bill of health from the dentist. We are now working on that.
Tonight if possible I will write telling of just how they are going to replace his aortic valve or at least if you are interested where you can find more info on it.
To all here I know my Dad would want to say:
\"FIGHT TIGERS\" ... something he use to tell me when up against the impossible.
Morning all
YESTERDAY I received ( more like sprung upon by ) a Fed-ex letter from the hospital informing me that they need a statement faxed from a Dentist ...Read more
Morning all
YESTERDAY I received ( more like sprung upon by ) a Fed-ex letter from the hospital informing me that they need a statement faxed from a Dentist affirming that no mean bacteria are lurking around my pearly whites.
So today after much trial......... ( most if not all Dentist offices around here have been closed since Christmas-eve day and will be to just after the New Year. And here is Cape Cod where the small sandy land mass is surrounded by a large quantity of salty water thereby making the ratio of Dentist to population relatively low ... such that as I explained to Michelle if I picked up a rock and tossed it that the odds of hitting a Dentist are low... I would be luckier if I was going for a wealth advisor, a landscape architect or a lawyer attorney type accident-auto. ) ( not that there is anything wrong with that ) ....I get my teeth x-rayed. AND then tomorrow, Saturday, a very kind and nobel Dentist, whom was not dinged with a rock, will open up his officer and read my x-rays and tell me and fax his results up to the hospital. I have my fingers crossed that there is no lurking nasties and that I get the all clear.
If so then next Thursday i report to Brigham & Women\'s Hospital for \"Percutaneous aortic valve replacement\".
If i get the clearance from the Dentist i will give a tell of just what this procedure is; since most of you on your journal entries post that you are going in for open heart surgery. If I don\'t get clearance from the Dentist then all will be put on hold until any bacterial infections are remedied.
all the best to all
I WILL BE HAVING A \"TAVI\"
WAITING FOR SCHEDULING
SHOULD BE MID JANUARY.
IT WILL BE A \"SAPIEN VALVE\"
IMPLANTED OVER THE NATIVE VALVE VIA THE FEMORAL ARTERY. ...Read more
I WILL BE HAVING A \"TAVI\"
WAITING FOR SCHEDULING
SHOULD BE MID JANUARY.
IT WILL BE A \"SAPIEN VALVE\"
IMPLANTED OVER THE NATIVE VALVE VIA THE FEMORAL ARTERY.
IF ANY READING THIS ALSO HAD THIS SAME PROCEDURE WOULD YOU BE SO KIND AS TO TELL ME WHERE I CAN READ ABOUT YOUR EXPERIENCES.
THANKS ALL. MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS.
............
same day...
... I just found out that I must go to Boston to fill out all the remaining paper work January 3, 2013 and maybe the \"TAVI\" will be the next day or soon thereafter. Waiting for a letter to arrive via post to confirm and get a better understanding of just what was said on the message left on the phone\'s answering machine. \"Clarity\" of understanding is a nice thing.