Vicki's Posts

Hi Vicki and I am sorry that you had to go through this a second time, let alone so soon. I have been through 3 mitral valve surgeries and my last was January 2015. I hope that you have contacted your doctor. Some breathless is normal after surgery, but to the degree of pain and discomfort you need to have it checked out. Your heart has been through so much that getting it checked out immediately will put you at ease. Best Wishes for a speedy recovery.

I also was very short of breath, even talking made me short of breath. I couldn't raise arms to comb my hair.. I called my surgeon and he ordered a chest X-ray which show I had some pleural infusion and He increased Lasix. I too, was to start cardiac rehab and my doctor said it would help the breathlessness. It's not uncommon but you do need to call your doctor. I was told to weigh myself everyday if I had an increase of 2-3 pounds to call him or if my breathlessness got worse. The Lasix and exercise did wonders for me. Also he was very strict that I followed my low sodium and low fat diet as well

I am at day 15 recovery from AVR and taking Lasix. I really didn't like it at first but my body is adjusting so it feels less out of control with frequency of urination. The doctor asked me to weigh daily and watch for an increase of 2-3 lbs just like Peggy said. I was told to follow low sodium and low fat too. As much as I love popcorn at the movies, I didn't want the side effects so I made other choices on Sunday and feel proud of myself.

Thank you all for responding. I saw the doc. He did an echo and it showed the same as when he did the surgery. He felt that it was just going to take longer to heal, this second time around. I still have a small amount of leakage. Just hope that's not what's causing the breathlessness. I'm on lasix too but you know he never mentioned a low sodium diet. Strange. I have felt better after exercising and my heart rate doesn't go above 90, but I'm still breathless. Will keep working at rehab❤ Thank you again❤