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Heart Disease (Expert Forum)
Any suggestions?
This forum is for questions and support regarding heart issues such as: Angina, Angioplasty, Arrhythmia, Bypass Surgery, Cardiomyopathy, Coronary Artery Disease, Defibrillator, Heart Attack, Heart Disease, High Blood Pressure, Mitral Valve Prolapse, Pacemaker, PAD, Stenosis, Stress Tests.
Any suggestions?
by kayl, Jun 01, 2003 12:00AM
Good morning! This is my third post. I have rheumatic heart disease. An echo on February 12, 2003 showed regurgitation in three heart valves. Mitral-Mild to moderate. Aortic- Moderate and Tricuspid-moderately severe. I also have mild pulmonary hypertension- PA 45? I was started on Cardizem 360 milligrams for about a month. Symptoms (shortness of breath, chest pain, etc.) continued. I am pacemaker dependent, the pacemaker was reset, and the night setting of 45 bpm was reset to the daytime rate. I was told that there was no amount of medication that could fix this. I went to a second cardiologist who did a second echo, I was told that the mitral valve area was 1.8, there was no aortic stenosis. I was started on zestril 20 mg. My next appointment is in a week. Is the Mitral valve (prosthetic St. Jude) the probable cause of my symptoms? Is a mitral valve area of 1.8 considered stenotic? Do you have any suggestions as to what might help, if anything? I know this is a confusing question, but I am scared and any information you can give me will be greatly appreciated. Thank you for your time.
Doctor's Answer
by CCF-M.D.-RCJ, Jun 01, 2003 12:00AM
Kayl,
This is a difficult question to answer. Which valve may or may not be causing your symptoms is difficult to determine without seeing you. I would actually argue against the mitral valve as the dimensions and regurgitation that you describe are not wholly unexpected with a prosthesis. I am more concerned about the aortic valve, assuming that it is not a prosthesis?
I would recommend that you consider 3 things:
(1) Is it known that you do not have coronary disease? If not then check that out first.
(2) Consider an expert opinion at a major center.
(3) Consider an exercise echo to see if one of the valves worsens with exercise.
Hope that helps.
This is a difficult question to answer. Which valve may or may not be causing your symptoms is difficult to determine without seeing you. I would actually argue against the mitral valve as the dimensions and regurgitation that you describe are not wholly unexpected with a prosthesis. I am more concerned about the aortic valve, assuming that it is not a prosthesis?
I would recommend that you consider 3 things:
(1) Is it known that you do not have coronary disease? If not then check that out first.
(2) Consider an expert opinion at a major center.
(3) Consider an exercise echo to see if one of the valves worsens with exercise.
Hope that helps.
