Melissa's Posts

Not sure if it's the same as what your son has, but I had a strange illness in 5th grade. Difficulty controlling my muscles, involuntary movements, weakness, etc, on my right side. I am right handed but had to write with my left hand for a period of time. Was very active like most kids until then, but was prevented from playing sports because everybody was afraid I will hurt myself. Had a bunch of tests done but there was no real diagnosis at the time. The illness eventually went away. 10+ years later I was diagnosed with mitral valve stenosis, and looking back, it seems that what I had in 5th grade was chorea. The stenosis was mild for 30+ years and it didn't prevent me from being active, but it does explain why my heart rate used to shoot up quickly when I exercised and took a long time to come down. It is my understanding that valve conditions caused my childhood infections tend to progressed slowly, especially if they start out mild. Hopefully that is the case for your son!

My regurgitation was barely detectable when I was at rest, however, under exertion, it was much more pronounced. I was always tall and thin, so I engaged in minimal amounts of strenuous activities - aka, couch potato. I likely would have known about the seriousness of my mitral valve sooner if I played sports. Don't anticipate what your son's stress echo results will be. Take it one day at a time. You'll deal with whatever is ahead if and when you have to. I wish you both the best! ❤️