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Do I need a new Dr?
My history:
I'm a 46yo male always stayed physically fit, kickboxing, running, light weights physical jobs. Healthy, no major issues before this, no cholesterol issues, no high blood pressure.
I have a BAV discovered about 5 years ago by my gp. Monitored through echos every 2 years. About 1.5 years ago I started getting severe palpitations and slight chest pain felt like my heart was exploding and I couldn't breathe when I got to about 160 bpm, I narrowed it down to this eventually through the use of monitors and experiments. This was weird as I had never had this before and started suddenly. Pushed gp to investigate, got echo then stress test echo, then referral to cardiologist finally a thoracic ct that showed an aortic aneurysm at a 4.9. Also my BAV seems to be failing thus causing the symptoms.
Cardiologist says let's wait and see if it grows in a while. Ct was done Sept 11 2023. New ct done June 5 2024 shows it's grown to a 5.1. Also, my BAV symptoms have gotten worse. I can't do any cardio for more than 30 seconds without feeling the issues and I get winded walking up stairs or sometimes just randomly.
My concern is that everything I read says the surgery threshold is the 5.0 and I was basically there in September and now both my aneurysm and my valve have gotten worse, imo, and my cardiologist had this lackadaisical attitude like it's no big deal let's just keep waiting! I know I'm young for the surgery but in my mind that means I'm even more likely to thrive after and get back to normal faster.
Do I need a new dr? What do I do? Thank you l.
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I’ve been going to Mayo in Jacksonville for years during my “watch and wait”, and I’m familiar with the surgeons in Gainsville. But, now that I’m right down to a decision on surgery, I wonder if there is another level of expertise elsewhere I should consider. Or, is the procedure like a routine oil change for a very good Thoracic Surgeon?
Congratulations on your successful outcome. You were certainly blessed to find it and get it fixed in such a timely manner with a good surgeon. Thanks for the guidance!
Mayo was so thorough on everything. I believe they are fantastic and one of the best for this situation.
That is exactly the situation. They do this on a regular basis, the other thing about Mayo Doctors is they are not paid on how many surgeries they perform. They receive a salary. I found my Dr. to be more honest and straight forward than those I met with previously. They also are involved with research and are up on the newest techniques. The recovery period is awesome as they are in close contact at all times.
One Doctor that I had met with earlier told me I could wait, but we should schedule it so we can get your insurance approved. Next think I know I am 3 weeks out for surgery, and when I told him I was not ready I had things planned; they became annoyed. Was clear he was in it for the money.
I highly recommend Mayo Clinic