Nasser's Journal

Hi Everyone - My God what an experience I have gone through and continue to go through. I had my Aortic valve surgery (replaced with a cow valve) on June 19th. The surgery itself took close to nine hours, as my surgeon had to replaced my aortic valve, place a graft in the aortic root, replace my entire ascending aortic valve with a graft and then replace the lower portion of my Aortic Arch with a graft. My doctor/surgeon knew exactly what needed to be replaced prior to the surgery, with the exception of replacing the bottom portion of my aortic arch. He wanted to have a better look at the arch, prior to making a decision as to whether it needed to be replaced. Turns out it did.
I then spent the next eight days in the Cardiac ICU at Stanford. This is where everything went sideways. My blood pressure was very low and remained that way for a few days. When they would try to sit me up in bed, my pressure would drop significantly (60/40). I would pass out and an entire emergency team would come in to revive me. This apparently happened twice, as I was passed out and didn't know what was actually going on.
In addition my White Blood Cell Count was very high. Getting my White Blood Cell count down to the normal range took all of the 24 days I was hospitalized.
In addition, on my second day in the ICU I was given an antibiotic that it turns out I am allergic to. It took days for my skin to clear up, from the potential infections all over my body.
When I checked in to Stanford Hospital for the surgery on Thursday June 19 my weight was 210 lbs. By Saturday June 21st I was 250 lbs. All this additional weight was caused by all the liquids they needed to give me during the surgery. My entire body was swollen. Every part of me. Both my feet had potato size blisters on them from the excess liquid.
When I was finally stabilized in the ICU, they moved me to a Step-Down Room, where I spent the next 15 days, trying to get rid of the excess liquid in my body, lower my white blood cell count and keep my blood pressure within a normal range.
I finally was able to achieve normal levels of everything.
Everyone's body is different and how each person reacts to a huge operation like mine is different. My surgeon and his team weren't completely surprised by the various stages that I went through during post-op.
I have been home for almost three weeks and am feeling more like myself every day.
I would still recommend my cardiac surgeon and the entire Stanford cardiac team for their excellent support. They did everything they could do to finally send me home to my family. I will never forget the kindness of the nurses, administrators, doctors and the cardiac surgeons. They saved my life. It took a little while to finally stabilize me but they did.

I am alive and thankful for everything I have in my life. Cardiac surgery does knock you down a few notches, which I think is good because it gives you a real opportunity to assess your life and what is really important in it.

I apologize for not writing sooner. I hope everyone in this group, who goes through cardiac surgery, is in the process of recovering or already completely recovered.
Bless you all. ITS GOOD TO BE BACK.

Hi Everyone, Hope you are all well. This is it T-5 days to my surgery. This past Wednesday I met with my heart surgeon Dr. Michael P. Fischbein, at Stanford Hospital. He is so comforting to talk with. He is the Director of Thoracic Aortic Surgery. We talked for the better part of an hour and he explained everything in very fine detail. He will replace my Bicuspid Aortic Valve with an animal (cow) valve. He will replace all of my ascending aorta with a material, which I forgot the name of (shame on me.) There is a new development, after he looked at my Echo, which I took last week, he found a slight aneurysm on the bottom side of the aortic arch (upper part of the aorta, above the ascending aorta.) He isn't sure yet if he will correct it. He wants to get a better look once he is in the area. He reviewed all the possible risks with me, although they are very minimum, he wanted to make certain that I understood. Yes, I'm sitting here somewhat worried. I think about this all the time and I think about my two daughters, who are my life and strength. I live in San Jose, CA and will travel to Stanford Hospital in Palo Alto, CA. It's about a 35 minute drive. My girlfriend Kathleen, who has been absolutely golden, will drive me to the hospital, where we will be meeting my daughters at 5:00AM Thursday morning. I can only imagine what I'll be feeling. I have to have the operation. I'd rather be safe than sorry. I may write again. Take good care. I'll be in touch. A special shout to Adam, thank you, thank you for this site. It helps ease the nerves! Best!!!!

Hi Everyone - My surgery date is set for Thursday June 19th, at Stanford Hospital. I meet with some members of my surgery team on Wed. June 11. In this meeting I will learn about all the details related to the surgery. I will also be asking many questions.
I cut back on watching YouTube videos of Aortic Aneurysms and Bicuspid Aortic Valves. Many of the videos are informative and educational. However, there are some videos that don't have great endings. I understand that this is reality but I rather not watch those videos, where things go south. I want to keep everything POSITIVE!!! Don't get me wrong. I feel for these people. I just need to be as healthy as possible going into this surgery, both emotionally and physically.

My count down clock is ticking and I can't wait to be on the other side of this, with a new Aortic Valve. It kinda feels like I'm getting a new car.

Wishing you ALL THE BEST. Take good care.

Hi Everyone, I am new to this Community Patient Feed. I am scheduled for Open Heart Surgery at Stanford University Hospital on June 19th. My operation will entail replacing my bicuspid aortic valve with a bovine valve. I also have an aneurysm in my ascending aorta. The aneurysm is currently at 5.0cm. The Stanford cardiac guidelines, as well as, I believe, industry guidelines call out for intervention at 5.0cm. So it is time. The surgeon, Dr. Fischbein, will remove the portion of my ascending aorta that has the aneurysm and replace it. 
I must say that as the date draws closer I am starting to feel more anxiety. Everyone says it is normal to have anticipatory anxiety as they will be cutting me open, and stopping my heart (for a few hours.)

I kind of wish that this surgery was already over and behind me. It's not and I must face it.

Any feedback would be appreciated.

Thank you all,

Nasser Abed