About Me (In My Own Words)
I consider myself to be a very active 30-year-old guy, who has always been into healthy eating, fitness, and activity. Don't get me wrong, I love the occasional beer or whiskey and I'm a sucker for ice cream, but I always imagined that I was leading a life of health and that I WAS healthy. Little did I know, I had a dormant problem that was really messing up my heart.
For the past year, I subtly noticed my cardiovascular endurance and capacity for activity diminishing. I initially thought that I was getting out of shape from changing to a sedentary job. This didn't truly add up in my mind- although I was sitting at work most of the day, I was going to the gym 5-6 days per week and continuing to push myself. But nothing changed.
Then, over the winter, I started getting bouts of heavy heart palpitations, dizziness, and faintness. I thought nothing of it for months, chalking it up to too much caffeine and stress. While on vacation in Chicago in July, I had a particularly scary episode where I almost passed out at breakfast for seemingly no reason. At that moment I said to myself, "When you get home, you better get your ass to the doctor and get this checked."
I went to my doctor a few days after returning home, and like my initial thoughts, she suspected that the stresses of life and too much caffeine were causing me to get these sensations. To her credit, she had me get an EKG to "rule anything out." As she read it, I could tell there was something abnormal on the printout. She indicated that nothing was acutely wrong, but considering my other symptoms, she was going to refer me to a cardiologist to get evaluated.
My cardiologist also suspected the stress and caffeine combo as the culprit of my issues. But, because of the EKG test, which indicated an enlarged left ventricle, he sent me for an echocardiogram.
No less than an hour after I had my echo done, the doctor's office called me and told me they scheduled an appointment for me to come in the very next day. At this point, I was very concerned. Why would they call back so quickly if everything was OK?
When I went in for that quick follow up visit on 7/31/15, I was diagnosed with a bicuspid aortic valve, causing severe aortic regurgitation. Over time this has caused my left ventricle to dilate, a condition called dilated cardiomyopathy. The cardiomyopathy is causing mild heart failure with an EF of 40%. My mitral valve is also "floppy" with a little bit of prolapse.
To confirm the initial diagnosis and rule out other potential issues, he sent me for a stress-echo, transesophageal echo (TEE), and a cardiac catheterization. All of these tests provided further convincing evidence of the initial diagnosis. The one bit of good news is that my arteries are perfectly squeaky clean.
Looking at the test results was pretty cool. I have a little background in anatomy and physiology from college, so I was able to interpret everything pretty well. Beyond interpreting terms, medical jargon, and numbers, THE VIDEO TAPE DOES NOT LIE.
The footage from the echos and catheter test were startling. There is literally a blowtorch of blood shooting back into my heart with every beat. It's as if my aortic valve isn't even there. My heart pump action was also alarming. When the heart beats, the left ventricle is supposed to contract to just short of the midline of the heart. My LV is not really pumping; it's basically a glorified twitch. I'm amazed my symptoms aren't worse than they are!
Right now I'm in a holding pattern, preparing for surgery. After meeting with Dr. Stelzer on September 15th and speaking with him on the phone afterwards, he thinks a repair on my aortic valve is unlikely. In other words, from my tests, he doesn't think the structure and/or thickness of my valve leaflets are favorable to a sturdy repair. It will ultimately be a game time decision for him, but he thinks I am an excellent Ross Procedure candidate because of my age, overall health, and other heart-related factors which he says are very favorable for a successful, long-lasting result for me. He is also going to look into mitral valve repair for me as there is some prolapse going on.
I have to say, everything I've heard and read about Dr. Stelzer and his staff have been spot on. He's a sweet guy who isn't afraid to make jokes to warm up the room. His office has been very accommodating and helpful to this point as well. The things that struck my wife and I the most about Dr. Stelzer are the depth of analysis he goes into regarding the patient's situation, the time he gives you in his office, and how he instills a cool confidence in you when you talk to him. He's as cool as a cucumber and makes you feel like he can fix you up without breaking a sweat- a very confident yet humble personality.
Throughout this ordeal my family and friends, especially my parents and wife, have been an incredible support system for me. I look forward to being a part of this community as well. I can't promise how often I will be posting on here, but I will try to offer my support to others as best I can.
More Info About Me & My Heart
More About Me
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I am from:
NJ
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My surgery date is:
October 19, 2015
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I was diagnosed with:
Aortic Regurgitation
Bicuspid Aortic Valve
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My surgery was:
Ross Procedure
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