Patient Story of Bruce Slater

My Story

About Me (In My Own Words)

Newbie Here!
I am 72 years old and I discovered I had Mitral Valve Prolapse with Severe Mitral Regurgitation and Severe Mitral Annular Calcification (MAC). I was doing well until I developed High Output Heart Failure and had a 3-night hospital stay to dry out. Since then I have been at 90-95% of my aerobic ability. I did not qualify for the Tendyne valve and I am waiting for the Intrepid valve since my local CT Surgeon does not feel he can operate with so much MAC. I have asked for appointments with David Adams and Marc Gillinov.
I have had a video conference with Dr. David Adams and Dr. Ahmed El-Eshmawi at Mount Sinai in New York. They said although I have a significant calcium burden, they feel like they might be able to repair the mitral valve and if not, they will do a replacement.
We are facing the expense of staying near Mount Sinai for 2 weeks and would love to hear where others have stayed.
Thanks - Bruce Slater
Update - August 9, 2024
Surgery occurred on April 5, 2024, with Dr. David Adams and Dr. Ahmed El-Eshmawi at Mount Sinai in New York City. It was complicated by the extensive Mitral Annular Calcification resulting in a replacement with a porcine valve rather than repair as initially planned. The procedure was further complicated by retro-cardiac (behind the heart) bleeding necessitating prolonged heart-lung bypass and prolonged ICU stay. In addition, the tricuspid valve was repaired and the atrial appendage was closed to reduce the chance of blood clots in case of atrial fibrillation. I am grateful to Drs. Adams and El-Eshmawi for their expertise in bringing me through the procedure. I benefitted from the excellent nursing and physical therapy I received in the ICU and the step-down unit.
When I went home nurses and physical therapists visited me at home and supervised 3 weeks of initial rehab. I then began a 12-week cardiac rehabilitation at a local hospital which I will finish next week. I also had COVID and rebound COVID even though I was fully vaccinated. It has been quite a journey, but I feel mostly back to normal. I anticipate my stamina will continue to improve over the coming months.
Bruce