Interesting. . .

[epstns]

My wife had her periodic consult with her cardio yesterday. She sees a doc in the same practice group as my cardio.

She tells me that I have become some sort of a celebrity at the cardio practice group. When the staff greeted her they were all abuzz about my case and my upcoming angiogram. They told her that there is already a waiting list of staff who want to scrub in for my procedure.

This could be good or bad. . .

Either they are totally wierd and they all want to see another old man on the table in a hospital gown, or they think they are going to see something rare or unusual in the exam process or results.

I'm guessing that they don't see too many patients with aortic valves as far gone as mine who are still as active as I've been.

Who knows?

 

[Duffey]

Tell them you want residuals on any photos taken!

Seriously, it probably bodes well for your surgery.

 

[dick0236]

Steve, I had a similar experience when I first saw my then Cardio soon after my surgery. They had every doctor and nurse in the practice come in and "listen" to hear what a mechanical valve sounded like. At the time it made me feel a little uncomfortable.

 

[Duff Man]

Maybe they think the badly calcified valve is going to be super gnarly, I dunno. I'd be interested to know why exactly they're so geeked about ya though

 

[Lily]

That's cute

Over the years several of my doctors would have their nurses come in and listen to my bicuspid murmur. It was quite "sloshy" and seemed to fascinate them.

 

[Michelle D]

The local docs at the hospitals around here all like to see my repaired valve on the echo, while I'm having the echo done since I had mine fixed by Dr. Gillinov. In south florida usually people are of the age to where replacements are more common. They are all very impressed by the workmanship of my valve.

 

[normofthenorth]

My surgeon told me post-op that my BAV was way in the gnarliest group he'd ever seen (and he's seen a LOT), but I don't recall it bringing any excitement or rock-star status with it.

One good thing: When they ask for volunteers to scrub in for your surgery, you sure wouldn't want everybody to hide, or give a list of excuses!

 

[OldManEmu]

I know what its like.
I had a constant stream of medical students and interns wanting to listen to my heart, this even went on post surgery.
One day when I was doing my walking rounds of the floor I came across one of them that had listened to me a day or two earlier.
I asked her how come everyone comes and wants to listen to my heart and not any of the others in the ward, she was very straight forward in her reply "most of the other patients in the cardiac ward are either deaf or senile", and it never occurred to me before that that was the reason.

 

[BAVD John]

Any chance this is the first time your doctor has performed an angiogram? I've gone through 3 angiogram procedures since 2005. During the first the cardio inserted one of those drug eluting stents to open up an artery. The second time he didn't like the results of one of those nuclear stress tests and the last time was a week or so before my surgery. I slept through the second procedure and watched on the monitor the other two. Pretty neat to watch what they are doing. Hopefully the monitor is within your viewing angle.

 

[TXWildflower]

You are just special I guess Steve - we all knew that anyway! My PCP constantly has nursing students that she brings in to listen to my heart. All my various Dr.'s seem fascinated by it. Can they save your gnarly valve so you can see it afterwards or does it just kind of disintegrate I wonder? I'll be about a month ahead of you to get this over wtih finally! Nervous and relieved at once - odd emotions. I'm sure you know what I mean as do most people on this forum.

Best of luck to you on yours!

 

[epstns]

Well, I hope they have a reasonable explanation. . . wouldn't want to be anybody's bad example.

This cardio group has done many, many cath's. We (my wife and I) have been going there for 7 or 8 years, and the hospital is among the top 50 heart hospitals in the US News listings.

For quite a while my cardio and I used to play a game called "Stump the new doc." It worked like this -- he would have the newest member of their staff do an exam and interview with me (before they got to see my echo results). Then he would ask that doc for their diagnosis and proposed treatment plan. It was amusing, because they always got the diagnosis right (aortic stenosis) but after they learned what my activity levels were (at the time I was still running 4 miles daily at about an 8:00/mile pace) they always got the severity wrong. Once they saw my echo results, they were baffled about how I could do what I was doing with a valve as small as mine had become.

Guess that game is over now. . .

 

[JUST-WAITING]

I worry about being used a poster child for " how not to take care of a body" - Maybe finding myself on the internet with a caption of "IF I HAD KNOWN I WAS GOING TO LIVE THIS LONG I WOULD HAVE TAKEN BETTER CARE OF MYSELF!!!"

 

[epstns]

In my case, they agree that I've taken good care of my body. I've just used one of its parts well past its normal "use-by" date!

 

[watson524]

Steve - perhaps after surgery when you're recovered and back to your normal activities, the game can be "guess how many miles this guy runs with his replaced valve".

 

[normofthenorth]

Maybe they'll agree to give you your old valve in a jar of formaldehyde. Of course, that might keep you on the bypass pump for an extra 5 minutes. . .

 

[epstns]

Well, if everything goes as I hope and pray it does, I will be so busy with life that I won't have time to worry about what the staff was thinking.

I WILL make time to come back here, though.

 

[Duffey]

Well, if everything goes as I hope and pray it does, I will be so busy with life that I won't have time to worry about what the staff was thinking.

I WILL make time to come back here, though.

Don't forget that pledge, Steve! Sometimes . . . . many times . . . . I forget I've had a valve replaced. It will be that way for you too.

 

[njean]

In my case, they agree that I've taken good care of my body. I've just used one of its parts well past its normal "use-by" date!

Kinda what they told me, Steve! There's no doubts in the doctors minds that I've taken all the necessary precautions to take care of myself....in fact, it's probably what's kept me alive this long!!!

 

[Guest]

I'm guessing that they don't see too many patients with aortic valves as far gone as mine who are still as active as I've been.

That'd be my guess.

Either way, it's kinda cool. I often am a "poster child" in the cardiologist office, too. The interns are always fascinated by me. Sometimes, I'm OK with it; other times, it just gets downright ... odd.

Lately, my cardiologist has been telling me of others that have been there that have mentioned me.



Cort | 37.m.IL.pigValve.pacemaker | 5 Monte Carlos + 1 Caprice Classic | * meet_05.21.11_FrnkGrv.IL *
MCs.CC + CHD.models.HO.legos.RadioShows + RoadTrips.us66 = http://www.chevyasylum.com/cort
"It's hard to tell if I exist" __ Barenaked Ladies __ 'Pinch Me'

 

[epstns]

Well, Cort, the day came and went (see posts elsewhere on the board), with nobody from my cardio's office in attendance. I did, however, get a copy of the video's of my cath. I can't yet reference them to the notes in the report, but the full-motion video's are sort of cool.

Next srop - cardiac MRI at Northwestern on Wednesday AM.

Are we still on for next Sunday?