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Heart Disease (Expert Forum)
Re: Ascending Aortic Aneurysm and Aorta Valve Replacement
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.
Re: Ascending Aortic Aneurysm and Aorta Valve Replacement
by CCF CARDIO MD APS, Jan 01, 1995 12:00AM
Posted By CCF CARDIO MD-APS on January 24, 1999 at 19:26:07:
In Reply to: Ascending Aortic Aneurysm and Aorta Valve Replacement posted by larry straight on January 23, 1999 at 12:48:32:
Iam a 49 yr old male that have just found out that I have a ascending aortic
aneurysm 5.0 cm and a mild to moderate aortic valve that leaks.
1. My Dr stated that this is a difficult operation and Mayo is the only one
in the midwest that does this work, on a continuing basis, is this true?
2. When does a aneurysm normally repaired at 5.0 or 6.0?
3. What is the average size that a aneursym rupture?
4. What are the statictics, length of stay, and how long does it normally take
to get into the hospital for this type of operation.
5. Im scared and have many questions, my doctor has sent my record to Mayo
this past week I hope to hear soon from you.
Thank you
Larry straight
_
Dear Larry,
1) Repair of an ascending aortic aneurysm and valve replacement/repair is a very involved, complicated open heart surgery, subsequently it begs a highly skilled and experienced surgeon. Granted there are only a small number of centers in the U.S. that have such surgeons, the Cleveland Clinic certainly is one of them and we are in the midwest as well as the Mayo Clinic, so no the statement is not true, as our surgeons do this particular surgery on a regular basis, last year the Cleveland Clinic did nearly 5,000 open heart surgeries, many of which were valve surgeries as well as aortic repairs.
2) aneurysms are considered worrisome (at risk for rupture, which in most cases means death) at anything greater than 5.0cm, so the decision to go for it (surgery) at 5.0, 5.5, or 6.0 is an involved one made by the patient after a thorough discussion with his/her surgeon regarding risks and benefits of going now versus waiting.
3)Basically, the risk of rupture goes up with every incremental dilation above 5cm, so technically there is no "average", rather we know from "statistics" that the risk is high enough in the >5cm range that it is time to seriously consider surgery as the risk to life by surgery is outweighed by the risk of rupture without surgery.
4)I can only speak for the Cleveland Clinic, as the length of stay is generally 7 days barring complications. This type of surgery can be done within a day, or a week, depending on the decision of the surgeon and the patient. This is certainly not a "I'm on the waiting list" type of surgery.
5)You should have a lot of questions for the surgical team and the cardiologist when you meet them, and it is completely normal to be afraid of such a major surgery that has very small albeit definite risks to your life.
I hope this information is useful. Information provided in the heart forum is for
general purposes only. Only your physician can provided specific diagnoses and therapies.
Feel free to write back with further questions. Good luck!
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.
In Reply to: Ascending Aortic Aneurysm and Aorta Valve Replacement posted by larry straight on January 23, 1999 at 12:48:32:
Iam a 49 yr old male that have just found out that I have a ascending aortic
aneurysm 5.0 cm and a mild to moderate aortic valve that leaks.
1. My Dr stated that this is a difficult operation and Mayo is the only one
in the midwest that does this work, on a continuing basis, is this true?
2. When does a aneurysm normally repaired at 5.0 or 6.0?
3. What is the average size that a aneursym rupture?
4. What are the statictics, length of stay, and how long does it normally take
to get into the hospital for this type of operation.
5. Im scared and have many questions, my doctor has sent my record to Mayo
this past week I hope to hear soon from you.
Thank you
Larry straight
_
Dear Larry,
1) Repair of an ascending aortic aneurysm and valve replacement/repair is a very involved, complicated open heart surgery, subsequently it begs a highly skilled and experienced surgeon. Granted there are only a small number of centers in the U.S. that have such surgeons, the Cleveland Clinic certainly is one of them and we are in the midwest as well as the Mayo Clinic, so no the statement is not true, as our surgeons do this particular surgery on a regular basis, last year the Cleveland Clinic did nearly 5,000 open heart surgeries, many of which were valve surgeries as well as aortic repairs.
2) aneurysms are considered worrisome (at risk for rupture, which in most cases means death) at anything greater than 5.0cm, so the decision to go for it (surgery) at 5.0, 5.5, or 6.0 is an involved one made by the patient after a thorough discussion with his/her surgeon regarding risks and benefits of going now versus waiting.
3)Basically, the risk of rupture goes up with every incremental dilation above 5cm, so technically there is no "average", rather we know from "statistics" that the risk is high enough in the >5cm range that it is time to seriously consider surgery as the risk to life by surgery is outweighed by the risk of rupture without surgery.
4)I can only speak for the Cleveland Clinic, as the length of stay is generally 7 days barring complications. This type of surgery can be done within a day, or a week, depending on the decision of the surgeon and the patient. This is certainly not a "I'm on the waiting list" type of surgery.
5)You should have a lot of questions for the surgical team and the cardiologist when you meet them, and it is completely normal to be afraid of such a major surgery that has very small albeit definite risks to your life.
I hope this information is useful. Information provided in the heart forum is for
general purposes only. Only your physician can provided specific diagnoses and therapies.
Feel free to write back with further questions. Good luck!
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.
Member Comments
by lexy69, Jun 01, 2009 03:24PM
A related discussion, Ascending aortic aneurysm with one less valve was started.
