11 year anniversary 03/19/15

[Lisa2]

Greetings, all. Yesterday marked my 11 year anniversary with my homograft. I have had a relatively easy 11 years. I really need to get in touch with Dr. David McGiffin and thank him again He's now retired and living back in Australia - good for him! His standard line to me while I was in the hosptial was that he would be retired by the time I had to have this valve replaced and well, he was right. I have no regrets about my original valve choice.

I am on the countdown now for the next surgery but we know how that goes......it could be a few months or it could be a few years. I have a follow up appointment with Dr. McGiffin's successor, Dr. James Davies, in May. I saw him in Dec. and we agreed to follow up in May for a CT scan to check for scar tissue / aneursym and an echo.
And then....well, we'll take it from there. I had honestly never considered just followig up with the surgeon at 3-6 month intervals rather than seeing my cardiologist and then being referred. He suggested it and my husband and I agreed.

So that's where I am. 11 years of no lifestyle modification and waiting to join the ranks of the INR home testers (notice I skipped the surgery and recovery part, not dwelling on that)!

 

[epstns]

Hi, Lisa,

I'm not sure how long homograft valves are expected to last, but 11 years isn't too shabby. As long as you're otherwise healthy, you may be in a position to choose the next valve to be the last one you need. Either way, you know a lot about what to expect, but I'd bet that things have progressed just a bit in the 11 years you've been away from the OR.

Wishing you continued good health, wisdom in your choices and the best of luck in your continuing journey.

 

[camgough]

Congrats! That's a great milestone!