Re: Aortic Valve Replacement

Posted By Michael on June 16, 1999 at 11:19:07
Hello,
I am 42 years old and I have had aortic insufficiency for many years but it has never bothered me until recently when I started to get some presuure and chest pains as well as pulpitations. After some echo scans and a recent cardiac catheter, the doctors have decided that I need to have my aortic valve replaced. This is due to be done on the 15th July. I am obviously trying to find out as much information as I can on the subject. The main questions that I would like help with if possible are the following:
How does the operation take and how long will I have to stay in hospital?
As I live in Gibraltar and the operation will be done in London, how long will I have to stay in UK before I can travel back to Gibraltar?
What is the normal recovery time before I can go back to work and to a normal life?
Can you really resume a totally normal life after the operation?
What does the recovery process involve, is there anything special which I will need to do?
The doctor told me that I will have to be on Warfarin for the rest of my life, how will this affect me?, I beleive that Warfarin reacts to certain medicines like antihistamines, disprin and others. Also I beleive that drinking more than 1/2 pint of beer  a day will no longer be possible, can you clarify.
I apologise for the long rambling list that I have made out, but I am obviously a bit worried and I have never bothered to find out much about the problem.
I would be extremely gratful for any information that you can provide.

Many thanks for your time.

[Cleveland Clinic, MD]

Posted By CCF CARDIO MD - CRC on June 16, 1999 at 16:20:21
Dear Michael ,
Q: How does the operation take and how long will I have to stay in hospital?
A: This will depend on how complicated the case is but in general should last 2 to 4 hours.
Q: As I live in Gibraltar and the operation will be done in London, how long will I have to stay in UK before I can travel back to Gibraltar?
A: Your doctor can give you a better answer but when patients come here for this type of surgery they are usually in the hospital for about a week and then they may stay in the area for another week or so.  This may depend on the level of care you are able to get back home and how easy it is to get back to London should the need arise.
Q:What is the normal recovery time before I can go back to work and to a normal life?
A: Again your doctor can give you the best answer but in general most people are back to work at least part time in 4 to 6 weeks and completely back to normal in 6 months to a year.  This will also depend on how healthy you are going into the surgery.
Q: Can you really resume a totally normal life after the operation?
A: Yes.
Q: What does the recovery process involve, is there anything special which I will need to do?
A: Your doctor will give you any specific instructions.

Q: The doctor told me that I will have to be on Warfarin for the rest of my life, how will this affect me?,  
A: Warfarin is a blood thinner and you will have to take precautions to not place yourself in situations where serious bleeding could occur (i.e. contact sports).  Some doctors recommend that their patients taking warfarin not drink alcohol due to the risk of falling.  You will have to have periodic levels checked and there are certain drug interactions that can occur.  You can find additional information about warfarin on this site by searching the archives.
I hope you find this information useful.  Information provided in the heart forum is for general purposes only.  Only your physician can provide specific diagnoses and therapies.  Please feel free to write back with additional questions.
If you would like to make an appointment at the Cleveland Clinic Heart Center, please call 1-800-CCF-CARE or inquire online by using the Heart Center website at www.ccf.org/heartcenter.  The Heart Center website contains a directory of the cardiology staff that can be used to select the physician best suited to address your cardiac problem.











Follow Ups:


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