Edwards Perimount Magna/Magna Ease

[Lawdog]

Hi All:

I am scheduled for AVR and ascending aortic aneurysm repair surgery in September, 2015. I have decided on a tissue valve. My surgeon has recommended an Edwards Perimount Magna or Magna Ease. Anyone here have one of these valves? How has it performed for you? Have you been able to be as active or more active than you were prior to surgery? Any regrets?

 

[Paleowoman]

Hi Lawdog - welcome to the forum. I have an Edwards Perimount Magna Ease aortic valve. I've no regrets about the choice of valve. I didn't find out which one I had until after surgery, I just told the surgeon I wanted to go tissue valve and when I asked she had said it would be bovine. I am pleased with the choice of valve as I know several others on this forum have that valve too.

There is very good post surgery patient/customer care from Edwards Lifesciences. First of all you get sent a little card to carry with you which tells any health professional what sort of valve replacement you have, plus the model and serial number of the valve in case there are ever problems. Also Edwards Lifesciences are very good at communication - when I've had questions about my valve they have got back to me very quickly, one time I even got a phone call from one of their doctors !

So far I think my valve is performing fine, post surgery echocardiograms show it to be seated well and working well. It's very difficult for me to tell as I was completely asymptomatic prior to surgery despite severe stenosis due to my bicuspid aortic valve (no aneurysm), so post surgery I didn't feel any benefits. It took a long time to recover, but that's nothing to do with the particular valve and everything to do with the actual effects of heart surgery. It took about a year before I was back to my pre-surgury levels of fitness - I was very fit prior to surgery, even lifting weights the day before surgery !

Re your other question on your other thread about the bed for when you get home. I slept on my sofa for the first six weeks or so. I was propped upright with pillows until I could lie down normally. Once I could sleep lying down for the whole night I transferred to a regular bed. I liked sleeping on the sofa as sleep wasn't easy to come by the first few weeks, even with sleeping and pain meds, so being on the sofa in the living room meant I could put the light on without disturbing my husband, I could go on my computer, get a drink, all sorts of things to distract me until I felt I could drop off to sleep again.

 

[epstns]

Hi, Lawdog!

I, too, have the Edwards Perimount Magna Ease valve. I've had it in place for over 4 years now, and I'm totally pleased with it. I am now 67 years old and still get to the gym 5 days a week, as I did before surgery. The only limitation I have is that of my beta blocker's effect in keeping my heart rate "down" to a max of about 145 BPM, while I was able to exercise up into the 160's prior to surgery. This is in no way related to my valve choice, as I had post-op heart rhythm issues and now have a pacemaker to keep my heart rate from going too low, and take the beta blocker to keep it from going too high.

Be aware that some of us still have heart murmurs after having a tissue valve implanted. My cardio and surgeon feel it is common and it is easy for them to discern that this murmur is caused by the relative "stiffness" of the tissue valve and is not a symptom of any problem. For them, it is easy to tell this murmur is different than the murmur one would have if a valve was becoming stenotic and failing. (Mine is an "early-peaking" murmur. Stenotic valves tend to have "late-peaking" murmurs.)

Even with my meds and my pacemaker, I'm back to a life that is "more than normal." I do things at 67 that many men in their 40's and 50's can't do. Life is truly good, and my valve is partly to thank for this.

 

[Paleowoman]

I have a murmur with my new valve, but, like Steve's, it's not an indication of anything 'wrong'. I's called an "aortic flow murmur" and means that to a doctor listening through a stethoscope my aortic valve sounds loud and radiates all over the pericardium. It doesn't sound loud to me, although it did for a few months post surgery as I was not used to it, now my heart sounds to me just like it did before surgery....if I didn't see the scar and remember I wouldn't know I had got a tissue aortic valve (I don't have to take any medication, was off the post surgery beta blockers by eight weeks). One doctor explained to me that the murmur is because the leaflets are new and the valve shutting nice and crisply. It makes me laugh because I'm used as a patient in doctors' exams where doctors are moving on up to become specialists, and some of them get confused if they are not up to spec and think there's something wrong with my mitral valve !!! No there isn't, it's the normal "flow murmur" of my Magna Ease aortic valve

 

[knotguilty]

I am also in the crowd. Subsequent checkups, valve is seated, no leaks, everything is good. I am able to run a lot easier and further than I ever have. I don't lift as heavy as I used to but I consider myself in excellent shape. Time will only tell if I made the right decision, but in the mean time I am 100%!

 

[Lawdog]

Thank you all for your replies. I think I have done the right thing for me by choosing a tissue valve, even though I may need at least two replacements later in life. And, my surgery has been moved up to the second week of August, which I am happy about as I am very anxious to get on the other side of this thing.

 

[epstns]

That sounds like a good plan, Lawdog. You should be back in fine shape in time to shovel next winter's snow!

 

[jhusker2]

I have had the Mitral Magna Ease valve going on 5 years now. I just had my yearly echo and all is still good! Additionally, I went to Edwards Life Sciences while out in California and they were a class act! Not only did the CEO make an effort to greet me personally, they were able to let me meet the actual individuals that made my valve. Not only was it touching, I found the tour of their facilities to be very informative. ELS has some of the best R&D out there right now. Additionally, they are one of the few (if not the only company) in the US currently conducting Mitral transcatheter replacement valve trials.. Good luck with your surgery!

 

[epstns]

Thanks for mentioning the Edwards Patient Appreciation Program, jhusker2. I forgot to mention that they have extended an open invitation to any patient having an Edwards valve, inviting us to visit and tour their facility and meet the team that was "hands-on" making your own valve. They also have an annual Patient Appreciation Day, but I have not been able to be out there when they've been held. I've heard that the folks who make the valves are just as impressed and touched to meet the recipients as the patients are to meet their "saviors." All-in-all, Edwards Lifesciences does seem to be a class act. Of course, I admit to being biased, as I depend upon one of their valves.

 

[Mike59]

I have a murmur with my new valve, but, like Steve's, it's not an indication of anything 'wrong'. I's called an "aortic flow murmur" and means that to a doctor listening through a stethoscope my aortic valve sounds loud and radiates all over the pericardium. It doesn't sound loud to me, although it did for a few months post surgery as I was not used to it, now my heart sounds to me just like it did before surgery....if I didn't see the scar and remember I wouldn't know I had got a tissue aortic valve (I don't have to take any medication, was off the post surgery beta blockers by eight weeks). One doctor explained to me that the murmur is because the leaflets are new and the valve shutting nice and crisply. It makes me laugh because I'm used as a patient in doctors' exams where doctors are moving on up to become specialists, and some of them get confused if they are not up to spec and think there's something wrong with my mitral valve !!! No there isn't, it's the normal "flow murmur" of my Magna Ease aortic valve

is it normal to still have a murmur post surgery with a tissue valve

 

[epstns]

I've been told that it is common. Normal? Not sure, but they are not at all worried about the small murmur I have post-op.

Also, the "new" murmur is different than the one I had pre-op. Before valve replacement, I had a "late-peaking" murmur that indicated that my heart was working extra hard to push blood out into my arteries. My "new" murmur is early- to mid-peaking, meaning that it is just a flow anomaly. Next time you have an echo, ask the tech about the different types of murmur, and ask to hear yours. You will hear the audio tone changing pitch, and if I understand it correctly, the later in the cycle the pitch peaks, the more serious an issue the murmur may indicate.

 

[jumpy]

Is this the only bovine valve made from the pericardium of a cow or are all bovine valves made this way. Sorry if this question seems a bit "dumb" but I'm just on the way home from the consult with the surgeon and he mentioned bovine made from the pericardium but didn't know what type of valve was used.

I went in with tissue at the bottom of my list but I've come out with tissue near the top. My list of questions was very small with tissue....

 

[Paleowoman]

All bovine valves are made this way, they're made from the pericardial tissue of the cow. Obviously cow valves themselves would be too big, unlike pig valves which aren't. I don't know all the manufactureres though. Most of us on forum seem to have the Edwards one.

 

[Fundy]

jumpy, I think the St Jude Trifecta is similar in construction technique. I think its different in that the stent is wrapped with pig pericardium and the valve material is of cow pericardium.
Other than that, I think they are very similar. Similar to paleogirl, I just went with the surgeon's choice, provided that it wasn't an actual pig tissue valve, as reading about their failures scared me away.

I wasn't knowledgeable enough to actually pick a specific brand at the time, but I think if I were making the same choice today , I would have requested the Edwards valve if the surgeon used them at all. Mostly because of their long and successful history with tissue valves. I don't think I ever hear anything negative about them. But then again I've got nothing to complain about the St Jude one I have either.

 

[David W]

Lawdog. I too have Edwards P valve like you. I'm post op 2 and a half weeks so early days for me. However it seems to have great reviews on here and from my surgeon in London. In relation to other responses to this thread, how would others describe a murmur? Is it like when your heart skips a beat? I might be murmuring if it is?