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I wasn't sure where to post this so I'll try in the "post surgery" topic. I'm happy to report that after about 5 months of seemingly very little improvement in my ability to be physically active (for me that means mostly running and some cycling), I've now seen some significant improvements in...

There was a nice story about a surgeon performing heart surgery in Sudan. It was aired on the US program "60 Minutes": http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/free-surgery-saves-childrens-lives-in-africa/ A young girl's life is saved by a valve replacement surgery after contracting rheumatic fever. I...

I had valve repair about 6 months ago and I see similar patterns. My HR can easily top 160 and even hit 170 if I run at anything other than a very slow pace, like less than 10 min miles. But I'm finding that it is slowly improving. A few months ago I really couldn't even do any type of...

Yep. I'm at the stage now where I've thrown away all the projections given to me initially and am just trying to plot my own course. I've decided that as long as I keep improving, even though it's terribly slow, I won't worry too much about it any more. If it stalls out and I still feel...

My inflammation is not to do with muscles/tendons from my exercise (unless you refer to the heart as the muscle). It seems to come from my heart/lung area and happens whenever I get my heart rate too elevated. It's measured by an increase in blood "CRP" levels and I can tell when it is...

I thought I'd share a brief update. I made it to my 6 month post-op anniversary on May 7. In the last month I've noticed some quantifiable improvements in my running abilities. It's not dramatic but it's enough that I know things are getting better. I did the exact same workout that I did a...

Hi Trixie. Thanks so much for your note. Even though what you went through was hell, it helps me to see someone else who managed to get beyond it. I've had to try to accept that I may not feel normal till the end of the year or so. Do you feel as good as you used to now, or is your "new...

Thanks Steve for the note. Sorry to hear about all the troubles you had after your procedure. I can relate to some of that but it sounds like yours went a little beyond mine (although let's hope mine don't get worse). I too was put on amiodarone and it caused me terrible breathing trouble...

Anne, thanks for your nice reply. You hit the nail on the head for me as well. No, I'm not pleased with the outcome of my surgery to be honest. Like you I recognize that it was a necessity and that a slow decline to an early death was in store. And yes I am grateful that the technology...

I thought I'd share my story here and would like to know if there are others struggling to return to an active lifestyle post-op. I had my procedure in November of 2013. The valve was successfully repaired using a robotic technique at Cleveland Clinic. But almost immediately I began to suffer...