On the clock - Aortic Valve, Aortic Root, Ascending Aorta, and hemi-arch replacement

[maprince231]

Hi All,

Planning to have my surgery in August at Duke with Dr. Hughes. I've selected the On-X valve and Dr Hughes will be going with a Dacron graft. Based on everything I've read, as long as things go well, I'm expecting ~5 days in the hospital, 4-6 weeks before I can drive, and then ~12 weeks before I go back to work.

I've been a lurker for a while here while I was in the monitoring state, but figured now was a good time to join.

If anyone has any thoughts, suggestions, feedback on doctor/hospital/selections, or things for me to consider outside of artificial vs tissue, please let me know

 

[ElectLive]

Well, unless you're just looking for a nice vacation :wink2: you could reasonably expect to return to work much sooner than 12 weeks, say closer to the time driving resumes, or if you occupation allows, even just ease back in part time at first. Duke has a good reputation and there are some folks here from the area who should be able to give you more specifics. Best wishes to you.

 

[Heart Of The Sunrise]

I had the same surgery and valve. I am going on 17 weeks post op and doing just fine. I was back driving in 4 weeks. Back to work in 10 weeks. I was blessed to be a patient of Dr. Bavaria as he is one of the best and my surgery was very complex. 9 hours in the operating room. Be sure to do the pre and post op surveys on ON-X's website. They are good for $200 in gift cards.

 

[Phil]

Hi,

I feel 6 week returning to work is too soon. I'm due go back on 12 August - 10 weeks after surgery and this seems fine. I'm at 6 weeks now and know I do not have the physical stamina (I still fade in the afternoon and try as I might need a sleep most days) nor the mental agility - I simply do not feel as sharp. I'm 54, the surgery took 7 hours and I had 3 things done - AVR, aortic root replacement and an ablation - these probably have a bearing as well. The other thing is the extra time is allowing me to complete cardiac rehab which is terrific - each session I do a little more, and feel a little stronger.


Phil.

 

[SuzanneSLO]

Monday marked 4 weeks after hospital discharge and I started back to work at my desk job part time. It helps that I can set my own schedule and work from home as well.

It IS a struggle to coordinate between cardiac rehab and work. On Tuesday, the combination was too much and left me exhausted and in pain. Today, I cut back on my work hours.

Everyone, of course, recovers at a different pace and has different circumstances at work as well. I work in a small office so my bosses and co-workers really appreciate even limited face time.

I had an AVR and repair to my aorta. I spent 4 nights in the hospital post-surgery. -- Suzanne

 

[AZ Don]

I was driving at 3.5 weeks. I'm at almost 7 weeks now and feeling pretty good. Stock up on books/movies to pass the time. Except for easy walks I was told to focus on taking it easy the first month. Best wishes on your surgery.

 

[maprince231]

Be sure to do the pre and post op surveys on ON-X's website. They are good for $200 in gift cards.

Thanks for the heads up, that will help cover my movie habit after the surgery!

 

[ski girl]

I was back at work (desk job with very understanding boss) at just over two weeks post-op, and full-time three weeks post-op. To me, returning to a normal schedule, or as much as I could manage, was critical to my recovery.

Sitting around like a sick person would have been intolerable! My brain would have rotted for sure

 

[epstns]

Even with all of my complications, I was back to work part-time at about 6 weeks. I work at a desk job and had a lot of schedule flexibility to schedule around cardio rehab and to work short days until I could manage the full routine. As ski girl said, for me too, returning to any part of my normal schedule made me feel that I was making progress toward being whole again and no longer a surgical patient.

 

[TheGymGuy]

Your timeline is a bit too relaxed. You seem like you want a long vacation. If this is the case the timeline is fine. If you have a desk job, you can probably do lots of work stuff 3-4 weeks post surgery if even on a part time basis. Everything else looks to be on par. Heck, take as much time as you like, but you will get pretty border around week 4. Now that I say this, I should have taken a longer vacation. I was working by 3rd week by the way.

 

[Bryan B]

Hi maprince,

I sent you a PM. What are the odds we both live in the same city, need(ed) the same surgery, at the same hospital, with the same surgeon. You will be in good hands with Dr. Hughes and Duke. They are one of the top 10 heart hospitals in the country. Living 30 minutes from the hospital is an added bonus.

 

[coffeelover]

Maprince,
I eased back to work by working half days the first week back. I was tired when I went home, but not overtired.
Best wishes to you!