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Heart Disease (Expert Forum)
High platelet counts after MV repair surgery and other small questions
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High platelet counts after MV repair surgery and other small questions
by alex_k, Aug 25, 2005 12:00AM
Hello,
I had three questions on behalf of my father.
1) He had a minimally-invasive mitral valve repair surgery done a month ago. Before the surgery, his platelet count was ~400, and on the day he was released from the hospital (five days after the surgery) it was ~300. He has developed a case of phlebitis in his left arm a few days later, and had a blood test performed exactly two weeks after the surgery. That test has shown his platelet count to be 741. Is that normal after a heart surgery?
2) On the day of the hospital checkout, he had an echo done and it showed he has a peak mitral gradient of 6 mmHg. What does that mean? It shows as "out of range" on the report, and I wanted to double-check if this is normal.
3) I am 27 and went on a heart checkup just in case because of my Dad. Turns out I have MVP as well and "mildly thickened leaflets", but no regurgitation. How likely is it to appear, considering my father had it at severe (at 50)?
Additional info:
He had a surgery done because he had Class 4 mitral valve regurgitation. My Dad was on the bypass machine for about 180 minutes because the surgeon had to re-enter his heart to change the annuloplasty ring to a bigger one during the surgery. He received three units of donor blood during the night following the surgery. He lost about 20 lbs of weight during the month around the surgery and is now 147 lbs. (height is 5' 10"). Blood test has also shown his MPV is slightly less than normal (i am guessing that's the average volume of a platelet). Other blood counts are normal.
Thank you very much in advance!
I had three questions on behalf of my father.
1) He had a minimally-invasive mitral valve repair surgery done a month ago. Before the surgery, his platelet count was ~400, and on the day he was released from the hospital (five days after the surgery) it was ~300. He has developed a case of phlebitis in his left arm a few days later, and had a blood test performed exactly two weeks after the surgery. That test has shown his platelet count to be 741. Is that normal after a heart surgery?
2) On the day of the hospital checkout, he had an echo done and it showed he has a peak mitral gradient of 6 mmHg. What does that mean? It shows as "out of range" on the report, and I wanted to double-check if this is normal.
3) I am 27 and went on a heart checkup just in case because of my Dad. Turns out I have MVP as well and "mildly thickened leaflets", but no regurgitation. How likely is it to appear, considering my father had it at severe (at 50)?
Additional info:
He had a surgery done because he had Class 4 mitral valve regurgitation. My Dad was on the bypass machine for about 180 minutes because the surgeon had to re-enter his heart to change the annuloplasty ring to a bigger one during the surgery. He received three units of donor blood during the night following the surgery. He lost about 20 lbs of weight during the month around the surgery and is now 147 lbs. (height is 5' 10"). Blood test has also shown his MPV is slightly less than normal (i am guessing that's the average volume of a platelet). Other blood counts are normal.
Thank you very much in advance!
Doctor's Answer
by CCF-M.D.-MJM, Aug 25, 2005 12:00AM
Hi alex,
1. A platelet count of 700 is a bit high. It should be checked again in a few weeks by your primary care doctor. Platelets will not stay persistanly elevated as a result of surgery.
2. A mean gradient of 6 mmHg is slightly elevated, but somewhat expected after a valve repair (I presume this was for mitral regurgiation). I would not worry about this.
3. The odds of you developing severe regurgitation are low. Not everyone with MVP develps MR. You should be followed with routine physical exams and report any new symptoms to you doctor in the unlikely event that you develop MR. By symptoms I means shortness of breath, waking up in the night short of breath, being unable to lay flat because of shortness of breath.
I hope this helps.
1. A platelet count of 700 is a bit high. It should be checked again in a few weeks by your primary care doctor. Platelets will not stay persistanly elevated as a result of surgery.
2. A mean gradient of 6 mmHg is slightly elevated, but somewhat expected after a valve repair (I presume this was for mitral regurgiation). I would not worry about this.
3. The odds of you developing severe regurgitation are low. Not everyone with MVP develps MR. You should be followed with routine physical exams and report any new symptoms to you doctor in the unlikely event that you develop MR. By symptoms I means shortness of breath, waking up in the night short of breath, being unable to lay flat because of shortness of breath.
I hope this helps.
