Thanks for all the good thoughts and words. Following surgery on Oct. 28, and about four post-surgery days in the hospital, I got home last night, and spent the night in my own bed. I did end up with a mechanical valve, as repair proved not to be an option. All went well. I'm physically...
Thank you to everyone who has responded, for sharing your experiences and your thoughts. My surgery is tomorrow--October 28. I've chosen to go with a mechanical valve, if a repair isn't possible. I'll know which way it went after the surgery. I just wasn't ready to sign up for surgery again...
My surgeon's guess was somewhere around a 70% chance of repair, though I think that was a somewhat off the cuff estimate. He's done about 100 repairs over the past 10 years, which my cardiologist says is a good number. As you say, my job is to decide which valve is plan B.
I'm 52, and was recently diagnosed with Aortic Valve Regurgitation. I have no symptoms at present, and this was caught at an overdue physical. Apparently, however, it's a pretty bad leak, and my heart is significantly dilated. I'm headed for surgery the end of this month (October). There's a...