D. Ryan's Profile

I was born with a deformed aortic valve that was missing one of the closure flaps and opened more like a coin-purse than a traditional tri-cuspid opening. My bicuspid aortic valve has some leakage and has been slowly become less and less efficient. After my routine round of tests the doctors noticed a change in my echocardiogram. Oxygenated blood was leaking back through what should be a one-way flow. My cardiologist recommended a wrist (radial) catheter procedure to more closely investigate the leakage. This confirmed her initial suspicion and immediately the hospital arranged for a surgical consultation that day before I was released. I have scheduled the procedure for Thursday of next week (7/2/2015) and have the support of my family and many wonderful friends.