Has anyone had mitral valve (hopefully repair) at either Tufts Medical Center or Brigham & Womens/ Mass General in Boston? If so, would you share you experience ...Read more
Has anyone had mitral valve (hopefully repair) at either Tufts Medical Center or Brigham & Womens/ Mass General in Boston? If so, would you share you experience 🙏 please.
Richard Munson You want to know about mass general including names of cardiologist and minimally invasive surgeon ju ... Read more
Richard Munson You want to know about mass general including names of cardiologist and minimally invasive surgeon just ask. I am so far living proof of their expertise 3 years ago.
Laurie Hall What was the name of your surgeon Richard? Yes, I would love minimally Invasive surgery and a repai ... Read more
Laurie Hall What was the name of your surgeon Richard? Yes, I would love minimally Invasive surgery and a repair.
Richard Munson Laurie, here goes. I believe in the team concept which was why i had my local cardiologist ( southern ... Read more
Richard Munson Laurie, here goes. I believe in the team concept which was why i had my local cardiologist ( southern massachusetts) in the wings as a consultant but my main go to guy at mass general was dr. Jacob dal bianco. He was also my second opinion. He is a fabulous cardiologist and person and his specialty is mitral valves. He has written books on them. His friend and my great surgeon was dr. Sergui melnitchouk who specializes in minimally invasive valve surgery. He was thankfully able to repair my mitral valve, repair some leaflets and do the maze procedure at the same time. I had my surgery 3 years ago during covid at 79 years old and the supporting staff was also great. I was in there 5 days and could have come home in 4 but i played it safe. Yes, i faked a pain. I have passed on both dr.s names to a neighbor and another lady on this site. All seem pretty happy. In fact my neighbor was on deaths door after a botched surgery someplace else. If interested in dr. Dal bianco or my surgeon, reach out to robyn fabiano at rcfabiano@mgb.org. She is a coordinator and mention my name . I don’t get a commission. Lol. Downside of mass general is the ride in and out of boston. After 3 years of follow ups i finally shifted back to my local guy as he is very capable to perform and read echos. 5 minutes from home. Anything i can do to help just ask. I love to help my hvs brothers and sisters.
Laurie Hall Thanks Richard so much, I just sent Robyn an email and I did mention your name. I'll let you know if ... Read more
Laurie Hall Thanks Richard so much, I just sent Robyn an email and I did mention your name. I'll let you know if she responds. I would love to have these experts working with me. Thanks again.
Hi everyone, I am being monitored for moderate/severe MVR trending to severe and am currently asymptomatic. My most recent echo was done 5/2/2024. One doctor ...Read more
Hi everyone, I am being monitored for moderate/severe MVR trending to severe and am currently asymptomatic. My most recent echo was done 5/2/2024. One doctor is recommending a follow up echo in November (6 months later) with a TEE. I have so many questions. . .. .does it make any sense to get a TEE sooner so that I will know the likelihood of repair? Also, I have consulted with 3 different facilities near me in NH. I doctor said just by looking at my echo that I have a high probability of repair and does not need TEE until surgery. He said I should not have surgery until MV is severe. All of them have indicated that repair is the top choice. Each facility seems like they have competent surgeons on staff with excellent track records. How do I decide where to go, help???
J Alexander Lassally Competent is a relative term in my opinion. I'd dig deeper - volumes of cases? approaches? age? perso ... Read more
J Alexander Lassally Competent is a relative term in my opinion. I'd dig deeper - volumes of cases? approaches? age? personal references from patients / about hospitals. There are no mitral reference centers in NH. You will have to decide if you want a thoracotomy or sternotomy... There is a definite sweet spot of intervention. Pre severe MR might be a little early, probably when squarely in severe it is time to fire things up ! PS Love the Seacoast. I lived on New Castle for a season :)
Richard Munson You are so close to boston. Mass general where i had my repair, etc etc. if you want a name or 2 ask. ... Read more
Richard Munson You are so close to boston. Mass general where i had my repair, etc etc. if you want a name or 2 ask. If not i will mind my own business.
Doug Fults For us asymptomatic folks, heart surgery is recommended once MVR reaches "Severe" and BEFORE permane ... Read more
Doug Fults For us asymptomatic folks, heart surgery is recommended once MVR reaches "Severe" and BEFORE permanent heart damage occurs. Here's the thing about TTE -vs- TEE - the TEE provides a more accurate measurement and depending on the nature of your regurgitation (like mine with an "eccentric" jet), can detect Severe status before a TTE can. I had a TTE in April that called my MVR "mild to moderate" but my Left Atrium was suddenly enlarging.. which prompted a TEE - where the MVR was found to be a "4+" on a scale of 1-4. So yeah if current indications (through a TTE / regular echo ?) are indicating moderate/severe, I'd suggest going through with the follow up TEE. Good news is even at 4+, they think they can do a repair.
Kathy Ozio Ditto what Doug said. Check out the video Adam just did with Dr. Gillanov from CC. Excellent info. I' ... Read more
Kathy Ozio Ditto what Doug said. Check out the video Adam just did with Dr. Gillanov from CC. Excellent info. I'll try to post here.
Valerie Allen Agree with J Alexander, competent is a relative term. It is important to get quantitative info
Robert Miller I am making this very short. I think you should go back to those 3 "facilities" (hopefully a cardiolo ... Read more
Robert Miller I am making this very short. I think you should go back to those 3 "facilities" (hopefully a cardiologist or heart surgeon) and get their opinion if heart surgery will be required sooner or later. If so, don't push it out until it becomes severe. It could cause damage to your heart and veins. Also, are they basing this on just one echo or multiple, possibly over several years? The development, you age, your general health, etc will all play a role in this.
Laurie Hall Yes, thank you all. I am so close to Boston, within an hour, and I know the rate of mitral valve rep ... Read more
Laurie Hall Yes, thank you all. I am so close to Boston, within an hour, and I know the rate of mitral valve repair is greater at both of the hospitals I'm looking at. I understand about timing and not waiting too long as repair is the gold standard. The Tufts surgeon told me to have the next echo (this will be my third in 2 and half years) and if it is not severe he said I should wait for surgery. He is one surgeon who told me that I am in a category of "high likelihood" for repair. I am planning on having the TEE in November and I hope that will provide more information.
