Boomer

Ok let's start at the beginning. I am 44 years old, a little overweight, about 6'2 very active. I always knew that I had murmur, but it wasn't until '85 that I was taking a physical for overseas duty with the Army that the doc that checked me suggested that I see a Cardiologist. He wouldn't say why he
just go see one. Well, reluctantly I did later on that year. I had never had any thing that I truthfully say was anything like heart pain, so I was a bit apprehensive. I thought I was too young to have anything wrong with my heart, that always happens too the elderly. Well, what I found out was that I had a leaky aortic valve and mitral valve prolapse. The treatment was at the time to give it the ole wait and see approach. Well, all went fine until about 1997 when I would get what felt like a deep ache just to left of my left breast. It was almost like something was inside me trying to get out. The
pain would at the start last only a few seconds but as time went by they increasingly became more intense and lasted longer. Until I was in New York on a job and it was hot and I had been working my butt off that morning and just about the time I started up the steps again it hit me. I had the worst
one yet, it put on my knees and lasted about 2 minutes. It was then I decided to go see another cardiologist, as I hadn't seen one since '85. So when I got home from New York I got an appointment. At the outset he told me that my pain probably wasn't from my heart, but he scheduled me for a stress test anyway. A few weeks later after I had the test I was told that a slight
abnormality was seen so they wanted to do a heart cath. Well, that showed them what they had missed before, my left descending coronary artery did not come off the right side of the heart as it should it. Both arteries came out of the aorta on the right side and the left curled back in-between the aorta and the pulmonary artery. So that artery was crimped and it flattened out as it went between the two big arteries. And as it turned out the left descending was stunted, it didn't go all the down the left side of my heart. Along with this artery defect I also had an aortic valve that was leaking more than 75%. So they also did a TEE to confirm all of this. I was told that a Ross Procedure would probably be the right thing for me because of what I do for living. I am in heavy industrial construction and the risk of getting cut or hurt is a constant kind of thing. So They suggested the RP because it not require the use of anticoagulant therapy. So I was set up with a surgeon at Vanderbilt University that had experience doing these procedures and went to see him. He told me after studying my case that I was in need of surgery and we talked about the RP but he suggested that we have a backup just in case for some reason the RP wasn't possible. So we decided that if we had to go with plan B that I wasn't really interested going through this again that
a mechanical valve would be the way to go. I had a hard time deciding to go with surgery not only because of what changes it would make in my life, but what it would do to my family since I am the only bread winner so to speak. But I did a lot of praying and soul searching, and decided to do it. On July 17th 2001 I had AVR and 2 bypasses at V.U. I was in the hospital a total of seven days only because my chest wouldn't quit draining. Or my stay would have only been 4 days. The first few weeks out I experienced terrible pain from my back right between my shoulder blades, I suppose from when they pulled me apart. I couldn't sleep in bed, and my chest was getting sore. It
has been 5 weeks post op now and I am getting stronger ever day, I hope to be back at work albeit on light duty in about 3 weeks. I will know more this afternoon I have my first appt. with my primary cardio today 8-30-01. More to come.

(Addition)
As my wife and I were reading my story she pointed out that I left out why the RP wasn't possible. So I'll explain. The doc said the aortic root was enlarged to a point of aneurysm. He didn't think that the pulmonary valve and root would fit and he would have had to cut my heart up too much to make it fit. So I have a mechanical valve in there.
 

An update 9-5-01. I have been released to return to work, but with a weight lifting restriction of 15 lbs. Not bad for just 7 weeks post op. He took me off all meds except for the coumadin (life time thing). So it is off to work next week I go.

BOOMER