Recent content by SiestaKeyJimmy

After many years of following this great “Valve Discussion” site, my “waiting room” time has run out and I’m getting TAVR (transcatheter aortic valve replacement) next week! My good news is because I’m “old”, I don’t have to face the difficult “valve type” choice, but TAVR has its own difficult...

Hey, I'm back. I’ve just completed another Echo and met with my Cardio Doc. He confirmed that (once again) I have “severe aortic stenosis”. (I have now been “severe” for over one year, and I have to say, it has not been that bad, fatigue is my worst symptom. Anyway, my time has run out. He has...

Chuck, Thanks for posting that “Iconic figure”, by Ross and Braunwald in their 1968 article. (FYI - I have studied and researched it over a few years, supposedly, it came out of a “sketch” on a napkin that they thought was the best “visual-aid” to help explain Aortic Stenosis in their...

Hi Chuck C, I appreciate your response(s)! I have to leave right now but will respond to you tomorrow!

Pmacky - please check your "Conversations" (at the top, right of your screen - that little envelope icon)

Hi & Welcome to the club.! This older guy is in the same confusing state as you. I was diagnosed with severe AS (Aortic Stenosis) over a year ago and found myself with the same concerns, that being, how do you know if you are having symptoms or not? In checking with the American Heart...

Hey thanks guys! I also heard from friends that same advice - on my next Cardo visit I’m going to quickly read this writeup to him. Also I like the idea of 2 shorter walks making a better single day total! As for feeling I’m 21, that would never work for me, but maybe I could try feeling I’m 75!

As I’ve discussed in the past, I struggle with “symptomatic”. My Aortic Stenosis velocity is 4.1, “severe”. My problem is knowing if I have symptoms - or how bad they are? I’m 83, never been that old before so I don’t know how “normal 83” feels? My main symptom seems to be fatigue, not as...

Hey thanks for the Sedation Link! It’s interesting, but doesn’t directly answer my concern. In about 3 weeks I have my Cardio visit and I will ask him directly what type of sedation I could use (if any)?

On a related (but different) question, can I ask the forum about dental sedation? With my recent severe AS (Aortic Stenosis), and a dental extraction coming up, my cardio says I cannot have “IV sedation” at the dentist. My dentist has been unable to get any clear answers on if I can have...

Thanks - its still a long ways off!

I’ve been lurking on this group since 2018 when I first learned I had mild Aortic Stenosis and would need yearly echos. (My background: Quad By-pass in 2016, currently 82 years old). This morning my doc said my AS has gone from about 2.7 in 2018, to 3.5 or so in 2021, to 4.1 (severe). He then...

Hi Karen, Welcome to the club! I’m Jim from Florida. I've been hanging around this helpful group since about 2018, when I was told I had moderate aortic stenosis. I was getting echos every two years. Last year I moved into the “moderate to severe” class, and I now get the echocardiograms every...

If there’s any “good news” on this subject for us over the hill 80+ folks, I guess it is that we don’t have to worry about making the right decision regarding the mechanical vs tissue question, right?

Hi Sue, I’m Jim, just turned 82. I am currently getting Echos every 6 months to watch my AS (Aortic Stenosis), which is moderate trending toward severe. I had Open Heart 5+ years ago and got a quad bypass, so I can speak from experience that that operation was not as difficult as I feared it...