One year out from aortic valve replacement (biscuspid valve replaced with bovine tissue valve by Dr. Pat Pappas at Christ Hospital, Chicago) and I feel great. Home in four days, Christmas shopping in two weeks, returned to work in 6 weeks started cardiac rehab after 8 weeks, and was running again at 12 weeks (I'm running a half marathon in May, 2011). And you have to look pretty hard to see the remnants of my incision, which was glued and is now barely visable.
If you have to have this thing done, do your research, talk to lots of people, etc. You'll feel better once you gather information. But also take heart (pun intended). You'll get through it and, after a few uncomfortable days and weeks, you'll feel pretty good much faster than you imagined. And, if you wisely go to rehab, they'll work you and really make you an animal (again, pun intended).
Just wanted to offer encouragement to anyone who is headed down this road. You can do it. I did, and I feel like the luckiest guy on the planet.
If you have to have this thing done, do your research, talk to lots of people, etc. You'll feel better once you gather information. But also take heart (pun intended). You'll get through it and, after a few uncomfortable days and weeks, you'll feel pretty good much faster than you imagined. And, if you wisely go to rehab, they'll work you and really make you an animal (again, pun intended).
Just wanted to offer encouragement to anyone who is headed down this road. You can do it. I did, and I feel like the luckiest guy on the planet.
