Need a surgeon for minimally invasive valve repair/replacement

Posted By Betsy on July 23, 1998 at 12:21:50:







My mother is 57 and had rheumatic fever as a child.  She has scar tissue on the mitral valve, and had a valvuloplasty several years ago at the Cleveland Clinic.  This condition has caused some damage to her aortic valve also. Recently her condition has worsened.   She was hospitalized 3 times in  April this year, with atrial fibrillation.  The medication did not convert her back to normal, so they performed cardioversions each time she was hospitalized.  About 3 weeks ago, her heart went out of rhythm again.  She was admitted for a heart cath and TEE, so the results could be sent to a surgeon for a recommedation.  She would like to have minimally invasive surgery for the mitral valve and the aortic valve, and she would like them to be repaired if possible.  Are all the surgeons at the Cleveland Clinic performing the minimally invasive technique, and if not which ones are?  She is planning to have the surgery done there, and is looking for a surgeon.  She would also like to know how many minimally invasive procedures have been done at the Cleveland Clinic, and what is the success rate?  Can the minimally invasive procedure even be done in her case since she needs to have two valves repaired?
Thank you so much for your help!