Cathy's Guestbook

Cathy Moseley  I just saw your post. Thanks so much! Of course I have lots of questions but one main one is 'which procedure will give me the best chance of longevity and quality of life?' I'm open to both procedures.

Cathy Moseley  Love the cartoon! Over 22 years ago I had my aortic valve replaced with a St. Jude valve and given 'lifetime' guarantee! It has worked great and I have been able to do anything I want. I eat tons of green things and stuff that would lower my INR but they've just given me more coumadin and it's worked very well. The interventional cardiologist who I was later referred to to see if I should have mitral valve repair/replacement now said that he'd rather wait longer so I'll go back in 6 months and take a stress echo and see if my pulmonary pressure readings shoot up.That would be an indication to have the surgery then. Because of my risk factors, even though the tests might look severe, I seem to have minimal issues exercising and no issues with anything else. It's a risk-benefit decision and at this time the risk outweighs the benefit. He also said that when the time comes I would probably need the replacement because of having a rheumatic heart valve. I'm not eligible for the mitral clip because of the rheumatic background. We never even got in a discussion about the type of mitral valve and I haven't taken the time yet to research that part in detail. He said to keep on exercising ( I do weights, cycling, yoga, low impact kickball/pilate/dance 5-6 days a week) and I walk. He said only modify my program if I start having symptoms. If I notice changes in my condition before my July appointment to call. So,for now all is good. I see that you've had mitral work done. Best of luck on your recovery! Thanks for writing!