About Me (In My Own Words)
Mitral valve repair, via robotic assisted procedure, is 100% successful! History: My mitral valve regurgitation was detected in early 2023. Unfortunately, it advanced from mild/moderate to severe in about 10 months. Especially during a skiing trip, I felt bad and knew the issue had gotten worse. I stopped skiing and came home. A week later I had a TEE procedure which confirmed the severity of regurgitation. I did some research and strongly believed that if I were to have a procedure to correct the problem, that the robotic assisted technology represented the best possible outcome. I had previous experience with Cedars Sinai Hospital and knew that was the right choice for me. I was very fortunate to connect with Dr. Joanna Chikwe. She reviewed my historical echocardiograms, TEE, and a fresh echocardiogram of that same day. Dr. Chikwe was very thorough in our discussion, but more importantly, she was so personable and so caring about my health and getting back to my normal life and active lifestyle. I agreed to have the procedure done as soon as possible. Just 3 weeks later I was in for surgery. Frightening as it is to have cardiac surgery, I am now so grateful that I did. Dr. Chikwe is highly skilled at this procedure and the outcome was excellent. For me, the robotic assisted technology is vastly superior to the split sternum method. I was out of the hospital in 3 1/2 days and my home recovery was much more rapid than I had anticipated. Within 2 weeks I was walking over a mile per day. Within 4 weeks I was back at the gym and began working my way toward my regular regimen of exercises and level of weights. After 8 weeks I am basically at 100% of full power and strength. I am absolutely amazed at these results. Summer is nearly here, and I have several tuna fishing trips booked. I already bought my season ski pass for next Winter. Yes, this procedure is that good! If reading this and you have any concern about the robotic assisted procedure, I hope this testimony will help with your decision. If you can access Cedars Sinai, Smidt Heart Institute, I highly recommend it as THE state-of-the-art in technology and very best in surgical team and total care staff. La Chaim! (translated; To Life!).
More Info About Me & My Heart
More About Me
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I am from:
Upland, CA
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My surgery date is:
March 26, 2024
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I was diagnosed with:
Mitral Regurgitation
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My surgery was:
Mitral Valve Repair
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