Cardiac MRI Result Conversions?

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malibu82

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 5, 2010
Messages
478
Location
Libertyville Illinois
Hi everyone it's me again

My cardiologist's nurse has called to let me know that my dacron graft looks great and there is no problems there so the pain I sometimes feel in that area is probably just nerve damage. I asked her about my aortic valve and since it was an MRI the numbers are calculated differently so now I need help to convert them!

She said my ejection fraction rate is 64% which I was very happy with.

My Aortic Valve Size is 2.2 x 2.1cm. Is the conversion for that simply 2.2x2.1? I don't figure it's that easy, and that would leave me with a large valve size meaning that the previous echo's were completely off.

My distolic aortic measurement was 2.0 x 1.9cm

lower descending aorta 1.9 x 1.8cm

this could all possibly be in MM instead of CM, i swear she said CM, but i think MRI measures in MM? who knows.

anyone know how to convert these?

i thanked the nurse for the results but said, what about children, can i have one?!?!? so she said she will certainly call me back. she also said the mri said to have me checked again in 6 months but that my cardiologists didn't recommend me coming back in 6 months but 1 year.....

thanks for your help once again!
 
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All great news kiddo!

I think you will find that the pain will be far less problematic now that you have some piece of mind. My drill sergeant in the army always loved to scream at us that:

"PAIN IS YOUR BODY'S WAY OF TELLING YOU THAT YOU’RE STILL ALIVE"

But than again I have heard

“PAIN IS FEAR LEAVING YOUR BODY”

After what we have been through, we should all be very VERY alive and totally fear free by now!
 
yes i think they must have because all of my previous echo's have shown it at 55% or 60% percent. i just wish i knew the conversion to find out my aortic valve area!
 
Are you sure those numbers aren't the diameters in two perpendicular directions--or there about?
Unless they traced the valve opening and had a program to compute the area, they would only just have a couple measurements. How sophisticated is the software for an MRI these days? Even with that ability, it would only be as accurate as the tech's hand was steady. If I'm not too far off-base here, then for a rough estimate you could take an average of the two #s, divide by 2 for the Radius, and use 3.1416 x R x R = ~ 3.63 cm2. Is that close to what the echos said? If so, would that be a good number?
 
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I don't know the answer to Malibu's Q, but 3.63 cm2 is a HUGE area for an AV, maybe especially for a non-Amazon woman. I've got a 2.7mm-sized valve, which is maybe a smidge larger than average, and I think they said that I might (or could) have as much as 2.8 cm2 effective area. (It's still less than that, initially around 1.6, then something like 2, IIRC.) I can't reconcile those readings with effective area, sorry.
 
my last echo's said 0.9cm , but according to my doctor my valve is not that small, but due to my aneurysm repair the dacron tube makes the readings off. i was hoping the MRI would give me a true reading, but i can't convert the damn thing!

thanks for all of your input. i am waiting to hear back from the doctor about whether or not i can get pregnant, and i will ask her about the valve size then.
 
To quote Rodney Dangerfield:

"The best part of kids is making them"

Personally, I can think of no better cardiac rehab in the universe. Knock yourself out kid!
 

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