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rwaze

Hi Folks -

Rich - 39 years old
02.23.2008 Minimally Invasive Mitral Valve Repair
Dr. Paul Massimiano
INOVA Fairfax Hospital, Fairfax, VA

Last Monday 2/23 I underwent minimally invasive Mitral Valve Repair on the posterior leaflet at Fairfax Hospital. I'm doing great with minimal complications that I will highlight below. However, I was definitely comforted by the posts on this site and appreciate everyones participation.

My experience at Inova Fairfax Hospital: Inova Heart & Vascular Institute was excellent - the entire medical staff from pre-op to discharge were knowledgable, empathetic, and comforting.

I was well enough to be discharged 24 hours after surgery but decided to stay an extra day because of 3 little ones at home and because I did not feel ready.

I went home on Wednesday feeling great but very tired. Pain was minimal, a little discomfort but not unmanageable. I had something called an ON-Q pump http://www.iflo.com/prod_onq_classic.php - this was very helpful in controlling the pain of my incision.

I was on lasix, kdur, amiodarone, toperol, aspirin, and percaset as needed.

Thursday was excellent - got a great gift basket full of DVD's from a buddy and watched some good movies. I took a shower - stayed in bed most of the day and felt like everything was fine.

Friday day was a little rough - started getting very dizzy, started sweating and felt significant heart palpitations. I ended up at the ER in Reston Friday night with Atrial Fibulation. While in ther ER I was hooked to a saline IV and drank some water - I popped out of A-Fib within a couple of hours. Went home Friday night feeling good again. My cardioligst took me off of lasix and Kdur - I was possibly dehydrated.

Saturday I went in and out of A-Fib - this was very annoying. My cardioligist doubled the dose of Amiodarone and basically told me to stay hydrated and take it easy - if I did not exit A-Fib after 24 hours - I was to go back to the ER.

Sunday - was pretty decent but did go in and out of A-Fib once.

Monday (Today) - I saw my cardiolgist - great guy , Dr. Scheiffer from the Cardiovascular Group - we adjusted some of my meds and put together a short term plan to see if we can manage the A-Fib to cease.

Let me know if you guys have any questions. I see the surgeon tomorrow for my 1-week follow up.

Thanks
 
Welcome aboard !

Some of your neighbors and fellow VR.com members also used that same hospital and are doing well. Marty comes to mind and others whose names I cannot connect with.

Intermittent arrhythmias are common after OHS and may show up 'out of nowhere' for a few (several?) weeks. Mine would last for 3 hours and clear on their own *regardless* of what protocol was used. After a while, I just called in to whoever was 'on-call' told them what was going on and my 3 hour history. They agreed to just advise 'sit it out at home' but promise to come in in the morning if it hasn't cleared. Never had to go in :).

Amiodarone is my 'Least Favorite Drug of Last Resort'.
Sotalol (generic form of BetaPace has worked well on A-Fib for several of our members.

If you haven't read the information sheet on Amiodarone, I recommend doing so, or Google it, or do a Search on VR.com to read some of the MANY discussions on that drug. It can have some nasty effects if continued too long at too high a dose.
 
Hello Rich
Your circumstances seem similar to mine: I'm a bit older than you but had a minimally invasive mitral valve repair 5 weeks ago today. I don't think I would have liked to leave hospital after one or two days (I took five, despite the horrible food!), but I hope that the A-Fib sorts itself out soon.
Cheers
Andy
 
Welcome to the forum, best of luck with the A-Fib and wishing you a continude good recovery.
 
welcome to valve replacement. you have found a spot for all of your comments and questions. we have an ongoing discussion about amiodarone and you might like to look into it some. just go above, click on search, type in amiodarone and you'll find lots of stuff pro and con.

glad you have joined us. there is way more than you can ever think to ask your dr, right here in VR.

glad to see you aboard. blessins...........
 
HI Rich, Welcome to the VR family. Good to hear you are recovering well, except for the A-fib. But know we are all here to support you.
 
Rich,
I would make it a point to weigh yourself every morning and check for fluid retention. A gain of more than 2-3 pounds in a 24 hour period is something to report. It has nothing to do with the a-fib, but is a good strategy for pinpointing post-op problems in a timely fashion.
 
Hey Rich,

I had a similar experience to yours at INOVA Fairfax. LeakyValve from Leesburg just had a mitral valve repair done by Massimiano a few months ago and he's doing well too. Dr. M. came in and checked on me the day after my AVR. I actually like his personality better than Dr Spier, but Spier is "da man" when it comes to the aortic side of the house. glad you could join us. I bet you'll get past your Afib in due time. It's very common after your heart gets banged around.
 
Hi Rich, and welcome from another Inova Fairfax graduate (AVR, Speir). I was amazed that they were going to release you after 24 hours! Outpatient OHS! I hope you have the a-fib behind you, and have no other setbacks--you sound in good spirits.
 
I had OHS at Johns Hopkins about 9 weeks ago. I had two episodes of A-fib after the OHS. It finally resolved itself.

I live in Montgomery County, MD. Maybe we should gather all the DC suburbs people and have a party? After your heart settles down, of course!

Cheers,
Maryka
 
Rich -

Sorry to hear about the bouts with A-Fib. Glad to hear things appear to be heading in the right direction. Two things I've learned: this group is fantastic for providing information, advice and comfort; and recovery is 100% specific to the person and your body will tell you when it's time to be well. We've all been through hell and sometimes need to remind ourselves of that very fact, despite episodes of feeling really good.

This weekend should be good for taking those initial walks outside!

Let me know if you have any questions. Stay well.

Mike
 
Maryka said:
I had OHS at Johns Hopkins about 9 weeks ago. I had two episodes of A-fib after the OHS. It finally resolved itself.

I live in Montgomery County, MD. Maybe we should gather all the DC suburbs people and have a party? After your heart settles down, of course!

Cheers,
Maryka
Click to expand...

I've been trying to do just that. In the reunions thread. OK on to the matter at hand. Welcome aboard, you will find alot of people from our area (mid Atlantic) here. You have found a great place to discuss ANYTHING. We've all been there or are about to go there and the support is priceless. Hope your recovery is speedy and best wishes.
 
Hi Folks -

Rich - 39 years old
02.23.2008 Minimally Invasive Mitral Valve Repair
Dr. Paul Massimiano
INOVA Fairfax Hospital, Fairfax, VA


Hey Folks - A-Fib is gone and am feeling great!!! Took my son to lacrosse practice and tossed the ball with him this weekend. Starting a slow exercise program this week and will hopefully be back to full capacity shortly.

Thank you for all the replies and well wishes - they are greatly appreciated.

Special thanks to LeakyValve Mike for answering all my questions.

Rich
 
Rich -

Great to hear! What a weekend to get out and play with your son!

Glad I could help. I connected with JeffM (Fairfax) and we went for a bike ride on Sunday. A reunion or happy hour should definitely be in the works for the DC-area folks.

Only other advice I would give - and this was consistent wisdom from everyone in this forum - is to not overdo it. You may feel REALLY well and forget that you've been hit by a tanker truck. Take it REAL SLOW. Perhaps even slower than you feel is necessary for the first few weeks.

Stay well and heal up fast. Let me know if you have any more questions.

Mike
 
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