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heyrebekah

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 4, 2009
Messages
67
Location
Chicago, Illinois
Hello all, I just started posting yesterday and thought I should introduce myself. I've known about my BAV my whole life, but about a year ago found out about an aneurysm too, when I went to consult with my cardiologist about getting pregnant. I have a valve measurement of 1.1 with severe regurgitation and an aneurysm of 4.4 cm.

My doc basically told me that my condition isn't severe enough for surgery. Yet severe enough that I should never try to get pregnant. Talk about a catch-22. And then she said even after surgery she would discourage me because I would be so high risk! :mad:

So we waited another 6 months and did some follow up tests, which came back exactly the same as before. But this time she consulted with a surgeon who decided it is time to go in fix everything at once. He is totally optimistic that with a tissue valve I may be able to get pregnant in as little as 8 months after surgery! I feel like I've been given a whole new life. :) But I'm pissed at my cardiologist for wasting so much time. I'll be 32 next month, and I think she would have just said "wait and see" until I hit menopause.

Anyway, just wanted to introduce myself. I'm still getting 2nd opinions from a few different surgeons and I'll probably try to schedule surgery for late April or May.
 
Too bad you didn't find the site sooner. Someone here would've prodded you to get another opinion some time ago.

It's fairly common for women of childbearing age to opt for a tissue valve to get them through pregnancies, often later going for a mechanical. There are some few who have gone through pregnancies on mechanical valves as well, but it takes some discipline and it does have some added risks for both mom and the baby associated with the anticoagulation therapy (ACT).

There was one such thread only a few weeks ago. If you do a search, you'll probably run across many others. (Blue bar up above > Search > Advanced Search > use Pregnancy or something similar to search, use a year or less as the time period.

In the meantime, welcome in!

Best wishes,
 
It's a known fact that Cardologists love to wait until damage is occurring and surgeons would much rather it be before that happens.
 
Hey, Rebekah!

Glad you found us! We'll try to answer any questions you might have.:)
 
Hey Rebekah! Welcome!

No worries on your age, dear. 30 something women are having babies every day!! I was almost 35 when I had my 3rd and aside from the weight "we" gained, all went beautifully. I had a bicuspid my whole life. It did not act up until my 50's, so I got through child-bearing with no troubles. I had no aneurysm.

I wonder, since the sternotomy is what actually takes the longest to heal, if you might want to consider seeing if a surgeon could go in a different way. Probably not, with the aneurysm, but it is certainly worth some discussion. Having a freshly healed sternum and a 9 month pregnancy doesn't sound like much fun, frankly. Sure, it will be healed, but it may give you some discomfort, I would think.

Anyway, welcome aboard. Glad you found us.

Best wishes.

Marguerite
 
Welcome to VR. Glad you found us. My wife was 35 when we had our first child, and almost 40 when we had our second. It's not unusual these days. Best wishes and good luck.
 
Just wanted to welcome you to VR & like others, I wish you had found this site sooner. Glad that they have started the wheels turning so that you can get the surgery you need sooner & then move on to motherhood! :)

Best of luck to you!
 
Hi, just wanted to welcome you, this site is brillant and will be able to answer any of your questions, i didnt find the site till i had, had my operation, but they have been able to help me since the op. They are like one big family.
You take care, and best of luck to you, please keep us posted to how things are going.
Jane
 
heyrebekah said:
Hello all, I just started posting yesterday and thought I should introduce myself. I've known about my BAV my whole life, but about a year ago found out about an aneurysm too, when I went to consult with my cardiologist about getting pregnant. I have a valve measurement of 1.1 with severe regurgitation and an aneurysm of 4.4 cm.

My doc basically told me that my condition isn't severe enough for surgery. Yet severe enough that I should never try to get pregnant. Talk about a catch-22. And then she said even after surgery she would discourage me because I would be so high risk! :mad:

So we waited another 6 months and did some follow up tests, which came back exactly the same as before. But this time she consulted with a surgeon who decided it is time to go in fix everything at once. He is totally optimistic that with a tissue valve I may be able to get pregnant in as little as 8 months after surgery! I feel like I've been given a whole new life. :) But I'm pissed at my cardiologist for wasting so much time. I'll be 32 next month, and I think she would have just said "wait and see" until I hit menopause.

Anyway, just wanted to introduce myself. I'm still getting 2nd opinions from a few different surgeons and I'll probably try to schedule surgery for late April or May.
Click to expand...

Regarding the delay and lost time, this is another reason that when someone has a problem that can only be fixed by surgery that they get an opinion from a SURGEON, preferably the sooner, the better.
 
This is an older thread. The thread starter, heyrebekah, has had her surgery.
 
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