About Me (In My Own Words)
I came from a family that wrote the book on heart disease. My father died at age 52 from complications of open heart surgery, where he was having 2 valves replaced and 3 artery CABG. My sister recently passed away from complications of coumadin resulting in a massive head bleed. She also had 2 open heart procedures. I've always been a healthy individual, being an avid runner and weight lifter. I was doing the job I loved and had a loving wife and great grown kids. In October of 2003 I awoke with acute pulmonary edema. not able to breath laying down and coughing up this wonderful pink froth. I gor dressed and went to the ER. I told my wife I had a bad case of bronchitis and was going to go get some meds. On arrival the docs did a chest xray and a BnP level ( blood test for CHF ) and they were horrible. They wanted to hospitalize me on the spot but I chose to go home to break the news to the family that I may be facing open heart surgery. A week later the operation was done, consisting of a aortic valve replacement and a 3 CABG procedure. I came through it real well, no complications, and was back at my regular routine in about 3 months. I opted for a bovine valve to avoid Coumadin. Life was good until the beginning of 2013 when I again Became short of breath. I was in Mayo Clinic in June of that year for a followup of a disease caused Fibrosing Mediastinitis, a very rare afflication that developed fibroid masses in your media stinum. It also attributes to heart disease and in my case the docs said that my aortic valve was once again moderately diseased. By November of 2013 my breathing was very labored. I was on Oxygen 24 hours a day. In January of 2014 I was told that my heart was ready to give up,as I needed triple valve surgery, to be done in one operation. I couldn't find any surgeons that would attempt it saying it was to high risk. Finally through a friend who was also a cardiologist she got me in contact with Dr O'Hair who said he would attempt it, although he didn't I'd survive the surgery. He operated on February 9th 2014 and I made it through! THe next 3 weeks I went through life threatening complications but finally was sent home after 3 weeks. I continue to rehabilitate myself which is slow and painful due to the FM which causes lots of body pain. But I'm getting there. If you have any questions about the details of my surgery of about Fibrosing Media Stinitis drop me a line. Thank you for letting me join the community and remember to keep fighting!
More Info About Me & My Heart
More About Me
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I am from:
Green Bay, Wisconsin
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My surgery date is:
February 9, 2014
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I was diagnosed with:
Aortic Regurgitation
Aortic Stenosis
Mitral Regurgitation
Mitral Stenosis
Tricuspid Regurgitation
Tricuspid Stenosis
Atrial Fibrillation
Coronary Artery Disease
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My surgery was:
Aortic Valve Replacement
Mitral Valve Replacement
Tricuspid Valve Repair
Coronary Artery Bypass Graft
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My surgeon is:
Dr. Daniel O'Hair
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My hospital is:
Aurora St. Lukes
