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The experience of this teacher, Candie Frank, is a real-life example of finding thoracic aortic disease expertise, including the aortic valve, and making an informed decision. Surgery is not the end of the story - Candie will have life-long follow up...

Here is a link to a specific page of information specific to this topic from the TABAV program at Valley Heart in New Jersey. There are several helpful pages on this center's site. http://valleyheartandvascular.com/Thoracic-Aneurysm-Program/Risk-Stratification.aspx Best wishes, Arlyss

Pain in the presence of an aneurysm of any size should be taken very, very seriously. There is a published paper that found that 60% of a group of patients whose ascending aorta dissected (tore), a life-threatening emergency, had an aorta smaller than the current size guideline of 5.5 cm, 40%...

Video by Dr. Wouter Schievink, lead author of paper published in Neurology, May, 2010: BAV and Brain Aneurysm Part One http://www.youtube.com/bavdtaad#p/u/3/99oT4dS3epQ BAV and Brain Aneurysm Part Two http://www.youtube.com/bavdtaad#p/u/2/RKShzX7KGik Best wishes, Arlyss

Dear Stephanie, I want you to know that in my heart I will be there with you and the baby, Kenny Wayne, and his surgeons on Monday, as I know many others will be also. May it give you strength to know that others understand and care. Arlyss

I might just clarify that among valve procedures, the Ross procedure is complex - very different than surgery on the aorta in the chest, but most would agree it is also procedurally complex. Best wishes, Arlyss

Thoracic Aortic Surgery has progressed much more slowly and is more complex/difficult procedurally compared to other surgeries in the chest, including cardiac procedures such as valve, CABG, and heart transplantation. There is no certification credential in thoracic aortic surgery, so it is not...

Dear Stephanie, I am so very sorry to learn what has happened to Kenny Wayne. I want to offer you comfort, hope, and courage. We live in a day when there is so much that can be done. I went through something like this with my husband. He did not have endocarditis – but his stroke was similar...

I am so very sorry your daughter has had a stroke. There is a great deal of information out there, and I hope you will find support both online and locally that will help you. I sincerely wish your daughter a complete recovery. There is discussion in medicine now of the "plasticity" of the...

Hi Shari, I am so sorry to learn of so many things affecting you. I am glad they are adjusting your medications. You mention your BAV as well as mitral valve. What have you been told about your aorta, the largest artery in the body, which leads away from the heart right at the aortic valve...

In case the medical staff are not aware of the association in those with BAV, please be sure that the aorta is checked for aneurysm and/or dissection. In the ER, this can be done quickly with a CT scan with contrast. For anyone reading this, chest pain coming from the aorta in the chest may go...

Bicuspid aortic valves do not always have a murmur. It is possible to have a BAV that cannot be heard at all. Regarding when to check children, I have heard different opinions. If there are no obvious symptoms, some recommend that children need not be checked until they finish high school...

Regarding the diagnostic testing for detecting aneurysms of the aorta, MRI - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JDd0yIwi15w CT - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_b3kYBm1otU A trans thoracic echo may or may not detect an aneurysm of the ascending aorta. This test can not look at the entire aorta...

In addition to the decision about the valve, for those with BAV or related to someone with BAV, there is an additional decision - that is what to do, if anything, with the aorta during surgery. R&N Brown above shared something very important - his asacending aorta was also replaced. If I were...

This paper, Choice of Prosthetic Heart Valve in Today’s Practice, includes some examples of calculation of morbidity and mortality cumulative risk. Here is the link http://circ.ahajournals.org/cgi/content/full/117/2/253 It mentions that outcome is mainly determined by patient-related...

This link gives more details about what happened. http://www.abc.net.au/rn/talks/8.30/helthrpt/stories/s1191667.htm

I neglected to give that last link, to a list of medical references that includes a section about BAV/TAAD in children. Here it is http://bicuspidfoundation.com/Medical_Information.html Best wishes, Arlyss

Here is a link to a video that provides information about the aortic root. The aortic root is not a circle - it consists of three distinct "pouches" or "sinuses", called Sinus of Valsalva. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-J_pSBVsSFQ This one also gives some information about the root and the...

There is a link to the paper on this page that should work. http://bicuspidfoundation.com/BAV_Families_Awareness_Alert.html Best wishes, Arlyss

I had no idea when I first came across the information in that paper in 2007 that it would directly apply to our family this year. We had one family member whose aortic valve was always difficult to image clearly, despite having more than one kind of test to look at it. The valve was stenotic...