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Has anyone been diagnosed with a leaky heart valve that regurgitated blood back into the heart? If so, and you had to have it repaired or replaced, approximately how much time elapsed between your diagnosis and your need for surgery?
Has anyone been diagnosed with a leaky heart valve that regurgitated blood back into the heart? If so, and you had to have it repaired or replaced, approximately how much time elapsed between your diagnosis and your need for surgery?
I have had mitral valve prolapse for at least 23 years. This is the result of a bicuspid aortic valve, which I have since the day I was born (I am 36). It's reasonable to assume that the mitral valve prolapse was present before it was diagnosed in 1989. I have been told that maintaining health habits (e.g. no smoking, eating healthy, not drinking too much, etc.) can prevent my current valve from failing badly enough to warrant a replacement for many, many years. My diet could be better, but I don't smoke, and do not drink regularly or heavily. I have had no indication that a value replacement will be needed in the foreseeable future. Take care of your heart, and it will take care of you!
More than 30 years. I was diagnosed with an aortic valve murmur when I was in my early 30's. - It wasn't a problem (I flew for a living and it didn't stop me flying.)
Over the years it got a bit more noisy, there was a bit of 'back flow' - but still no problem. I was on 10-yearly checks, which went to 5-yearly checks.
In 2005, I started to get angina (stable angina) and was diagnosed with heart failure - still not a real problem.
In 2008, I was diagnosed with aortic stenosis. No immediate action required.
In 2010, my cardiologist said: "You've got a coronary artery which is beginning to block. We don't need to do anything now, but you need to keep an eye on it."
he put me on 6-monthly checks.
I had a check in March 2012. Nothing was any better - but nothing was much worse, either.
During the summer, I began to have problems. The Angina became unstable and although some days I could do whatever I like (and I spend my summers hiking in the Alps) there were other days when I couldn't go more than a hundred yards or so without getting out of breath.
Last fall, I started making a fuss and was referred to a cardiac unit. I went for my first appointment on 26 Dec and took a suitcase. I persuaded them to admit me and to run a few tests (unstable Angina was the justification for that.) I had an ultrasound that evening, an angiogram and CAT Scan the next day and the following morning I got a new valve, the stenosis was cleared and a CABG.
I'd had heart problems which had increased slowly for more than 30 years. When things did start to go wrong, they went wrong very rapidly indeed.
I was lucky. It was a long time from detection of the first problem to the need for surgery and I (and my doctors) had become accustomed to the fact that 'there is a problem - but it's not urgent.' When it did become urgent, everything happened very quickly indeed and the repairs were done before there was any permanent damage to my heart.
They operated on the 28th - and said I could go home on the 31st.
I have had mitral valve prolapse for at least 23 years. This is the result of a bicuspid aortic valve, which I have since the day I was born (I am 36). It's reasonable to assume that the mitral valve prolapse was present before it was diagnosed in 1989. I have been told that maintaining health habits (e.g. no smoking, eating healthy, not drinking too much, etc.) can prevent my current valve from failing badly enough to warrant a replacement for many, many years. My diet could be better, but I don't smoke, and do not drink regularly or heavily. I have had no indication that a value replacement will be needed in the foreseeable future. Take care of your heart, and it will take care of you!
Best of luck. - If you do need a new valve, things can happen fairly rapidly. I told the surgeon who was going to do mine I was thinking about a Wolfram valve and he said "If you go for a metal valve, then not only will you be on Coumadin for ever [I could live with that] but there will be a long list of restrictions. - No Sky-Diving, for a start! If you have a tissue valve there will be no restrictions."
I said to him: "I'm not into Sky-Diving ... but I do jump off mountains with a parafoil."
A look of horror passed over his face.
"If there are no restrictions, then I'll be able to do that this summer, won't I?"
"If you like" said he.
If you do ever need a replacement valve, then you'll be amazed at the difference. My heart output had fallen (probably over a number of years) and although I hadn't really begun to notice it until last summer there had been a significant reduction in power output.
With a new valve, it's as if somebody has thrown a switch and doubled your power output!
The most common type of heart valve disease in the elderly is aortic stenosis. It is a progressive disease, which means it will get worse over time and this can be life-threatening. Learn more about heart valve disease and aortic stenosis so you can talk to your doctor about your symptoms.
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