Mitral valve repair

Thank you Darla..I did this already...the info at Healthgrades for my veteran surgeon has virtually no reviews...no historical info of substance...but, thanks for the tip. I am surprised the hospital, which is sooo awesome doesn't provide the info reflexively to each new patient. Mayo is top shelf...I am confident that all their surgeons are fabulous, which is why I made the decision to trust the Institution..but the lack of info about the surgeons baffels/frustrates me. Occassionally, one finds surgeons and hospitals marketing their services, and they speak of surgeons specifically having done 10,000 surgeries, etzc...stuff that's mind blowing...but, their hospitals as a whole have poor to average rankings. I wish the info was required to be provded by some licensing or State agencies, but, it is not.

Welcome to Connect, @johnjms. Preparing for surgery can be so stressful and overwhelming! There's never such thing as too many questions, and educating yourself is one of the best ways to eliminate any anxiety and empower yourself as a patient. The surgeons/doctors/nurses are are there to guide you before, during and after surgery, so please ask your doctor everything that's on your mind until you feel that you understand the whole procedure.

Here are some resources:
– Information from Mayo Clinic about questions to ask your cardiovascular doctor: https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/mitral-valve-regurgitation/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20350183
– Two recommended public search tools that offer patients information about surgeons' previous patient outcomes are SurgeonRatings.org https://www.checkbook.org/surgeonratings/ and Surgeon Scorecard https://projects.propublica.org/surgeons/

One of the indicators of a surgeon's expertise is certification by the American Board of Surgery and active membership in the professional surgical society of their specialty. The American College of Surgeon's website offers a list of professional societies. You may also contact these societies directly for additional information: https://www.facs.org/surgeons/surgical-specialty-societies

I think Mentors @hopeful33250 @predictable might have some thoughts to share with you as they are also familiar with heart issues. I encourage you to also view this discussion on Connect, https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/bypass-surgery/ where you will meet @tkdunlap @vermontrob @suzy51 and others who've shared their experiences about bypass surgery.

@johnjms, what are your top concerns? Have you asked your cardiologist for recommendations and insights?

Had the same thing done about 18 months ago. (MV repair through mini thoracotomy) They had me on Eliquis (blood thinner) for 3 months and then just stopped it. Had another Echo at 3 and 6 months and then again at a year. Found out my repair fell apart and am now recovering from open heart surgery with a mitral repair. The drs never told me that it the valve was already bad at the 3 & 6 month echos so pay attention and get copies of your op report, and follow up echos! I learned a hard lesson!

Am so sorry that happened to you @rd4610. How are you now? I'm 3 weeks post-op and have the 1st post surgery visit with Dr scheduled on the 21st of March. Am still waiting for a surge of energy. Can barely make it through required daily routines without having to sit /lay down to catch my breath. Spring is emerging and I want to get out and work in the yard. Then there's the problem of pain from osteoarthritis and spinal stenosis; and I am not supposed to take the antiinflammatory drug, diclofinac, that I had been taking to control that pain. The home health nurse makes it sound like I should be walking a mile a day. My friend is taking me to the library today. I hope I can make it in and out of there without collapsing; but there are overdue books and I need new books. At least I can read. March Madness is also helping keep me occupied; especially with the Missouri Tigers looking strong at the end of the season.

I am about 2 1/4 weeks post op and doing pretty great! Did you have the thoracotomy or sternotomy? And a repair or replacement? I found the "Mini" Thoracotomy for the repair was way worse that this time have a full sternotomy and replacement. The repair took me about 3 months before I started being out of pain and almost back to normal at 6 months. Take a pain med before you go out!
There are hours of the day I have discomfort at all...amazing! Yesterday I felt great and went out with my husband. I stayed out about 1 hour too long! Needed a pain pill badly when I got home!!! My post surgery appt is March 19th!!! Close to yours!! Let me know what your dr says.

My biggest complaint is shortness of breath. Do you have a problem with that? It could be my lungs. I had polio when I was 4 and histoplasmosis in early teens, both of those have been associated with adult organ impairment. Prior to valve surgery, I had a breathing test along with all the heart tests; and today I will see my primary care physician to go over the results of that. I am only using Tylenol for pain medication. BTY, I had a mini thoracotomy. Am looking forward to getting off the blood thinner, jantoven(at 3 pills/6mg every night because my blood doesn't want to thin up). Have had to alter my healthy diet to a high protien diet (mostly meat) due to restrictions on high vitamin K foods.

Thanks for your reply! I did have shortness of breath before surgery but they started me on Lasix and that helped! Hope you have a quick recovery!!! Good luck getting the blood levels correct..always a fun task!!! Sometimes it takes a awhile for them to figure out. All the best to you!

Was your surgery at Mayo Rochestet? Who were your surgeons?

<p>Has anyone had a mini thoracotomy to replace heart valve? How did it go?</p>