[lodwick]

You have my thoughts and prayers with the heart thing going on.
My real estate partner called from his hospital bed to let me know that he would in all likelyhood be cracked open tomorrow for a valve job. Yikes.

Please take care and keep us posted. JL

[SuziQ]

Yikes is right on the valve job! The reason the heart thing gives me MUCH pause is that a cousin of mine died in 1995 because she had had a valve replacement done in Nov. of 94 and went into a coma from which she only awakened for a couple of weeks, then slipped back in and died. Turns out, when they opened her up, her heart was severely damamged and no one had ever discovered it! She was on a transplant list, but never got well enough for it, then died. She was only 6 months older than I, so here I am 7 yrs. later, ahem, several pounds heavier, and wondering if there is some hidden damage to MY heart! Her Doc seemed to think she might have had an undetected case of rheumatic fever. Odd thing was, she was NEVER sick, but her brother DID have a case of RF! What bothers me is that MY brother also had RF when he was about 12 and I was 9.

I did have an echocardiogram back in 1996 when I had a different episode of this. I'm scheduled for another the third week of July. Then I have an appt. with the Cardio guy in Aug.

So I will keep your friend in my prayers; surgery is never a casual thing!