Pulmonary valve replacement

[gale]

I'm a 58 yr. old man who 50 years ago had a experimental surgery where they submerged me in bath tube of ice to lower my body temp. them removed the pulmonary valve visually. You can read about the surgery if you have source to Americian Med. Journal Nov. 21, 1953 titled Surgery by direct vision in the open heart during hypothermia. I am case #3 in the article.

For almost 50 years I haven't thought about my surgery or future problems with my heart. I went to school, lettered two years in gymastics, worked two job during high school. After High School I did the normal things found a good job got married, had two kids, got devorced and remarried.

The only time I would see my cardioligist (Dr. Gilbert Blount at the University of C0. now retired) would call for a follow up because of my early participation in heart surgery. or they were working on new testing equipment.

I've written this to show that you can have severe CHD and live a fairly long and normal life for you youngers out there.

For 50 years I didn't take one heart pill, have any invasive testing done, but know that has changed.

In Oct of this year I started being short of breath and went to my GP since I though it was caused by smoking, Oh Yah back in the late fifties is was cool for everyone I knew to smoke and since all my young life people told me you can't do this or you can't do that, I proved to them that I could do all that. Any way in Oct. of '02 I started having bouts of shortness of breath and sleepiness during the day and decided to to go my GP and was told first that I had right side heart failure, then phemonia, and finally emphysema from smoking. I decided to go to my cardiolist to see for sure that it wasn't my heart and low and behold the testing started the full cylce EKG, EchoEKG, xrays, and finally MRI. My pulmonaray artery is 3 cm in size rather than 2 cm, my right side of my heart is twice the size it should be. I'm waiting for opionion on whether I am a canidate for a pulmonary valve installment. C

Anyone on line ever heard of someone having a pulomary valve replaced after 50 years without one. If you have please contact me.

God's best to all and may all you youngster on line have as great of live a I have.

Gale

 

[Ross]

Hi Gale and welcome to the forums.

You have a unique little case there, don't you?
I've never heard of such a thing, but then again, you learn something new everyday. I'll have to check around on that one, but I think your answer is going to lay with the surgeons.

 

[gale]

Good day to everone,

Finally received official results of MRI and consultation from my cardi.
Severe dilation of Right Venticle & RV volume of 248 ml.
Severe pulmonic insufficency
Significant dilation of main and branch pulmonary arteries.
Mild reductin in RV function.
Normal LV size and function.
And finally told I was not a good canidate for pulmonary valve replacement. Dr. said if I was 20 years old they would recommend a new valve, but I'm not 20 years old.
So for now I guess I will just keep PUMPING alone.

Gale

 

[Ross]

Gale get a second and even a third opinion on that. I wouldn't settle for that answer until everyone else said the same thing. Maybe get your medical records and send them to a specialist at The Cleveland Clinic or Mayo Clinic. I haven't heard of a pulmonary valve replacement, but they're always doing something in the research hospitals. It wouldn't surprise me to find that they can do something for you.

 

[Nancy]

Hi Gale-

I just took a look at the personal stories section on the main page and one of our members has had a pulmonary valve replacement, her name is Tracy Bergacker. Yiou can read her story there.

Sounds as if you need another couple of opinions like Ross said. Maybe yopu really DO need a new valve. Better do a little more investigation.

Best wishes.