Living with a Mechanical Heart Valve: Click.Tick.Thump. Love It!

Artificial Heart Valve Surgery & Living with Warfarin: UK Info Support Group

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Hi all....found this site more by accident while surfing for info on my upcoming surgury.

 

I was born with a heart murmer that was later diagnosed, when I was 30, as being caused by a bicuspid aortic valve defect. This year I turned 50 and now after monitoring the valve for the last 20 years, my specialist has recommended that it get replaced as soon as possible. I have run the gauntlet of all the pre op testing....Echos, CT scan, MRI, Angeogram etc etc. and all else is peachy keen except for the valve. They said it is severe stenosis with 70-75% leakage I do believe. They are recommending a mechanical valve because of my age and activity level.

 

I am on the list to get the valve replaced between March 15th and April 30th.

 

Needless to say, I am nervous about getting the procedure done, but the alternative of leaving it is not that good, so we, the wife and I, have decided to go ahead.

 

Any info or advice you can give me about the surgury, recovery, when you wake up, etc etc would be greatly appreciated.

 

Regards

Curt 

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Permalink Reply by John French on March 6, 2012 at 19:37
Sorry to hear that Curtis - the waiting is stressful as you just want to get it done. Try to stay positive and keep the end game in your sights.

Regards

John
Permalink Reply by step_by_step on March 7, 2012 at 6:04

When you wake after sugary being depends from the human body. And how much need to spend a time in Resuscitation,depend from the fettle. Pain you almost will not feel,because will drip morphine. If you have a questions,you can ask me. I will try to give the answers, my eanglish is not so good. But i will try:)

Permalink Reply by Bryan Chua on March 9, 2012 at 13:56
Hi Curtis,

First of all I think you stumbled upon a great site with lots of resources and encouragements. I just had my Aortic Valve and a part of my Aorta replaced 10 days ago and like you, I was a nervous wreck a few days before the actual big day. But you know what? The waiting part is much more difficult than the recovery part. It will hurt (the operation) of course but you will get past it like everyone else.
Day 1 operation - Morphine and dont fight the intubation device. Almost pain free just discomfort. But I assure you that you will dream of a big glass of ice cold beer. Also, when you wake up you will feel ecstatic that you made it through and there is a full life ahead of you. Please book the 7am operation. You dont want family members waiting for you to wake up during the wee hours of the morning. When you wake up..ask for a pillow for your cough (important)
Day 2 lots of pain sternum area but devices/equipments will be removed one by one. Each one removed will be a milestone. The catheter is the clincher hehehe
Day 3 pain in the morning but already on my feet in the afternoon. Made it to the bathroom for my first pee. Tylenol only for this day
Day 4 almost pain free but discomfort due to lack of movements...made walks along corridor
Day5 Felt much better and discharge is almost possible

Well I hope you find these helpful and I wish you a swift recovery!



Day 4

Day 2
Permalink Reply by Bryan Chua on March 9, 2012 at 13:58
Hi Curtis,

First of all I think you stumbled upon a great site with lots of resources and encouragements. I just had my Aortic Valve and a part of my Aorta replaced 10 days ago and like you, I was a nervous wreck a few days before the actual big day. But you know what? The waiting part is much more difficult than the recovery part. It will hurt (the operation) of course but you will get past it like everyone else.
Day 1 operation - Morphine and dont fight the intubation device. Almost pain free just discomfort. But I assure you that you will dream of a big glass of ice cold beer. Also, when you wake up you will feel ecstatic that you made it through and there is a full life ahead of you. Please book the 7am operation. You dont want family members waiting for you to wake up during the wee hours of the morning. When you wake up..ask for a pillow for your cough (important)
Day 2 lots of pain sternum area but devices/equipments will be removed one by one. Each one removed will be a milestone. The catheter is the clincher hehehe
Day 3 pain in the morning but already on my feet in the afternoon. Made it to the bathroom for my first pee. Tylenol only for this day
Day 4 almost pain free but discomfort due to lack of movements...made walks along corridor
Day5 Felt much better and discharge is almost possible

Well I hope you find these helpful and I wish you a swift recovery!



Day 4

Day 2
Permalink Reply by step_by_step on March 9, 2012 at 18:40

Good to know that you are after all and quickly rapid pace. The worst stay in past. Now need to increase and forward to the life:) I wisch that recovery way would be  easiest. Good luck and dont forgret cary about yoursalfe:)

My last sugary was very dificult for me. Was difficult to recover. I spent 4 days in intensive care units. and only one day remember. Was visual impairment. I did not see hardly anything. Also have had internal bleeding. Again popping the ribcage. Later in the lungs gather water. Was difficult to breathe. I recovered after sugary just only after 6 months.

Now i always   survive for a same fate of friends,be happy then they are happy,and everythink is ok.:) I wish for everybody have optimist minde and never lost a hope. I have very much hops and want  to share them with everybody...

Permalink Reply by Curtis Huebner on March 20, 2012 at 11:16

Well, they have a second surgury date for me for this Thursday, March 22nd/2012..........I am hoping this one is a go as the waiting is getting very nerve wracking!

Permalink Reply by Neil Buckland on March 20, 2012 at 11:23

Hello Curtis,

Hope the waiting is over. Look forward to hearing all about it after the op.

Best wishes,

Neil

Permalink Reply by John French on March 20, 2012 at 20:23
Good luck - hope it goes ahead
Permalink Reply by Curtis Huebner on April 3, 2012 at 16:17

Hi all.... well my surgury went through on the 22nd of March...sure glad that is over....but here I am 12 days post op and still very weak, no wind and tired.

Day of surgury and Day 1.... don't remember anything of the surgery thank god, but was wheeled into the OP room at about 1:30pm and was out and in ICU by 6:00pm. started to come out of the sleep by 6:45pm but I was quite agitated so they put me down again for another 2 hours with a much better result the 2nd time waking up.

Breathing tube came out about an hour later (yeesh) and I was super thirsty. I never realized how good ice chips could be! About 2:00pm nausea set in....... NOT A PLEASANT EXPERIANCE....with each heave and dry heave I thought I was dying, but the nurses in the ICU gave me a shot of something and it was all better 20 min later.

 About 8:00am the two drainage tubes in the chest were removed....again not a pleasant experiance, just the shock of how they felt while being removed, not much pain involved.

At 3:00pm I was taken up to the CCU (cardiac care unit) where I stayed for the remainder of my stay.

Was up and walking by 6:00pm....what a great feeling. Not a whole lot of pain just when I sneezed, coughed or got out of bed wrong (I learned quickly how to do that correctly).  Some solid food again.....but still no real apetite.

Day 2....about 11:00am this morning the catheter came out (yeah) and I was free of all connections. Still had IV lines in arms and neck and pacer wires in the chest, but nothing else. Apetite slowly returning....still drinking lots and getting rid of a lot of excess water.

Day 3,4....pretty much like day 2 but getting stronger each day

Day 5....INR stable at 2.6, had a consult with my surgeon, an Echo, an xray and the pacer wires and all IV tubes removed and I was discharged at 12:00 noon.

 

12 days post OP now and going to see the doc today for a follow up visit and get him to check everything....Still have a real tightness in the upper abdomen area right below the ribcage, shortness of breath and still tired a lot. I want him to check on the tightness and see if maybe it is just some trapped gases or something as I am quite bloated in the stomach area.

 

But all in all....doing not to bad at this point I think. I have come to the realization that I will not be back to normal for quite some time yet. This healing thing will take a while.

 

Permalink Reply by phil pendleton on April 5, 2012 at 13:08

Curt - Best of luck with your op - I had a similar experience to that which awaits you.  Its a fairly long road to recovery but one which has greatly improved the quality and duration of my life. 

I had my MHV op around 18 months ago when I was 58 following a heart attack.  Immediate post op was pain free due to drugs and my only real memory of it is a floaty surreal world and the beautiful face of a Phillipino nurse ( no, its not wishful thinking, my wife confirmed that she existed!). 

After about a day of this I woke up for real and felt really awake and alert, I am told this was due to now getting the proper amount of blood to my body/brain.  I was then only on 2 standard paracetemol every 6 hrs or so and was amazingly generally pain free in my chest area - as indeed were several others on my ward who had MHV/bypass surgery.  However, every now and then I had to cough up some stuff that had collected in my lungs as a result of the anaesthetic.  This did hurt and nurses advised how to minimise the pain - this went after a couple or three weeks. 

As mentioned previously its best not to stretch etc as you may disturb the surface wound, however your chestbone is stapled together very sturdily so don't think that it will burst open if you clear your throat.  The nurses had me walking once I was on a recovery ward - within 36 hrs (or so) of op I think, and made sure I continued with this as much as possible.

I was due to go home 5 days after op although this was extended to 10 days because of an infection in my leg where they had taken veins for my double by pass. 

Once home they wanted me to continue walking and I reached a mile a day after about 2/3 weeks, which was far more than I could do pre-op.  The consultant discharged me after my first checkup (around 4/6 weeks after the op) and I was next seen at 3 month stage, had a baseline scan at 4 months which showed that the valve was positioned perfectly and had no leaks.  2 check ups followed at 6 monthly intervals and my next one is due 12 months after this.

I was told by my surgeon and subsequent consultants that there are rarely any preoblems with MHVs, however, I must say that I was a bit puzzled by the lack of fuss and concern about what had happened to me. I soon realised that this was because the op was a complete success and that I was 'fixed' - so there wasn't that much to say really, other than get on with the rest of your life!

I have done and its great to be alive!

I hope I have been of some help to you at this worrying time.

 

Phil P.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Permalink Reply by phil pendleton on April 5, 2012 at 13:19

Curtis - sorry but I just realised that you've had your op - didn't pick this up when I sent my reply just now.  Have a good recovery

 

Phil p.

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