[gas_dr]

I am a cardiac anesthesiologist and critical care physician. With all due respect to other posters, if you remain TOTALLY without symptoms, and continue to be so, there is no need to entertain a very large surgery which is an aortic valve replacement. In fact, your age would work the opposite — in other words you would NOT undergo a valve replacement unless you had significant other issues related to this bicuspid valve (stenosis or regurgitation), because artificial valves only last so long, and repeats chest surgery is complicated and dangerous.

If I were you, I would know I had it, follow up on it as needed or at least every year — and see if there is any significant progression. Delay replacement as long as possible provided you don’t have any complications or symptoms of the disease...

Freepmail me if you want or have any other questions. All the best

[golux]

A one way valve can be highly effective, reliable, and durable in any manner of specs. Some folks get the “joker” valve, but the Lord gave you a different kind. Naturally I’m with the doc: watch it close and don’t fix what works. Good luck an don’t panic! It’s only a pump.

[boycott]

Very good advice.

My mother had an 8”-10” section cut our of her colon last year. The doctor said it would an easy procedure for him and that it would only take about 40-45 minutes.

She got infection from the surgery and died 2 1/2 months later. She was in otherwise good health. The small tumor they removed was basically non-aggressive cancer and wouldn’t have required chemo or any treatment.

I agree with reducing the number of surgeries as much as possible.

[An American in Turkiye]

Thanks gas_dr. I was taken aback at first but after some research, the heart seems to usually compensate for the lack of valve. My doc will continue to monitor it. We haven’t discussed surgery. And perhaps I jumped the gun on the diagnosis; he is performing a TEE on me next month. The nurse told me that my ribs may have blocked the view during the regular echocardiogram performed yesterday, so he wants to perform the TEE to take a better look. Hecsaid there is a POSSIBILITY that I have BAV, but until I have the TEE, it is only speculation. But I heard the term BAV and freaked out a bit. It’s hard being a patient sometimes...

[wardaddy]

See I told you....we have the real deal here saying just what I said

I’ve dealt with a crap heart since my late teens but lacking the tools they now have nobody knew and thought I was hypo

Only when they sawed me open first time at 46 in 2004 did Will Coltharpe realize my LAD was completely intramyocardial and four intraseptal bridges and totally non functional but augmented by loads of tiny Gods arteries compensating but which given their small gauge were ischemic and failing

Left mammarial graft worked for a while but they should have gone below D2 so 11 months later I elected to redo with right mammarial and bridge further down the LAD

In addition I too had mitral valve prolapse....it was nothing

I had PVCs and various AV block all my life which progressed

Now I have full blown trifasicular block which means without a pacemaker my pauses between my upper and lower chambers are morbid....like 26 beats a minute last syncope I had.....that is can’t raise your head off the floor as world of vision gets pinhole small....not good

Scares your family and the dog....only cure is a pacing pacemaker

Additionally I have a galloping arrythmia which of course given my luck is excercise induced at times.... Only the best arrythmias for me...lol

I take sometimes 400 mg of regular toprol or lopressor.....same drug

And I can still make Whoopie with that much betadrenagenic blocker coursing through and in that case I am extremely lucky

Bottom line.....id pay large to have your heart....enjoy it

If you’re worried about it....ask for some Xanax or klonopin.....you ain’t gonna die anytime soon

Good luck

And really I’m only maybe a 7-8 on the bad scale maybe even better cause my pumping coefficient is mid 40s which is not horrible....I just wish my lungs would open up better with less scar tissue

Every time you get cracked open you could lose a little lung function ....it scars the available expansion room if that makes any sense

And don’t forget blue meat from that good old contrast stress test....a lifetime of a crap ticker you are gonna carry some dead heart meat

You know in poor nations they use to go in and cut it off the ventricle to stave off congestive heart failure

Wild huh?

I really want you to quit worrying

I think 2-5% of the general population have your malady....which btw is frequently quack diagnosed....used to be common in tall skinny models

If it needs attention you’ll know it