Erica's Journal

Susan Lynn  Erica - I wish you all the best with your upcoming procedure! Good for you for getting 22 years out of your valve!! You're in great hands at Penn.

I totally over packed for my surgery. The things I would recommend are pajama pants, a robe, and slippers or slipper socks. They'll have you up and walking the hallways within hours of your surgery. Those gowns can be drafty!

I would also recommend a phone charger with an extra long cord and noise canceling headphones or ear plugs. If you're initially in a CICU, they can be noisy.

Finally, bring a button down shirt or a full zip top. You may also want to bring a pair of loose fitting pants for the ride home. Some people have a little extra water weight after surgery and find it more comfortable to have clothes with a little stretch.

The hospital provides almost everything you'll need. You're going to do just great!

Rose Madura  Hi Erica, the best thing for me was a travel pillow. And something I needed but didn't have was a long phone charger.  Maybe some throat Losengers and chap stick. They will give you any supplies you need.  God bless you. Your valve lasted a long time.

Delise Becker  Hi, Erica. Every hospital and every patient is different. I found that I did not need --or want-- most of what I packed. I had a sternotomy to replace my mitral valve and repair my tricuspid valve, so I brought one surgical bra to the hospital, as instructed by my surgeon's nurse. I wish I had brought two or three, because I ended up being there 8 days/7 nights. I also brought one pair of PJs, but never wore them. I needed to stay in my hospital gown at all times, for "ease of access" for checking drainage tubes, my sternum, placing electrodes, etc. When I showered, I had to use the hospital's surgical body wash for my sternum and areas where drains/wires were or had been. They had another type of shower gel for the rest of me, including my hair. They did not allow my own shampoo as it could run down into the sternum. They did not want me to use any other products, including lotion. I did bring my own toothbrush and toothpaste, which I used, and I also brought lip balm, although the hospital supplied a lip gel. You can't have any product that has petroleum jelly in it. 
I did bring a package of my own facial wipes, like for removing make-up, which I used only on my face. I had some complications after surgery, so I did not get to shower right away and I was glad to have the wipes so that I could at least clean my face. I also brought a couple of make-up items, but I never felt like putting on makeup. 
What I wore to the hospital is also what I wore home, since I had it on for only a few minutes on arrival day. I wore a comfortable lounge set: elastic waistband and wide-legged pants with a button-front top. I wore flip-flops to and from the hospital, but it was still in the high 90s in TX when I had my surgery at the end of September. I would recommend shoes that are easy to slip into and not tight, as you may have some swelling of your feet and ankles. 

I hope that helps. Others may have more suggestions. I wish you all the best for your surgery on 11/6. Prayers for you and your medical team. 

Michele Miller  I overpacked, they wouldn't let me wear my own socks (even though they had non-stick on the soles too). Agree with other suggestions, long phone charger, lip moisturizer. I appreciated wearing light but warm loose pants. My husband bought some shortbread cookies for me, some of the post-op antibiotics made me nauseous.

I wish I had my travel pillow but I forgot it. Make sure you get a heart pillow! I treasure mine. 

Best wishes to you for your surgery

Grace Mason   Erica, I packed and used all of these items.Chapstick, baby wipes, icy hot, compression socks, my own soap(dial antibacterial (also dry shampoo), my own pj's that open in front, loose pull on pants, front close shirts, earbuds & eye mask(great for drowning out noise and light thru the night) hair bands and ties, a couple of post surgery bras(front close and one a size larger to accommodate swelling)the hospital may provide these too. An extra long charge cord. Slip on shoes with backs and support like sketchers to walk in and keep my socks clean. Some fragrance lotion to make me feel/smell better since you are not able to shower for so long☺️
Oh, and my own pillow was my luxury item❤️

Pamela Gregory  Hi Erica, I am from Newark too! My surgery was a year ago but definitely your own pillow and blanket make you feel more at home. PJ's, slippers, socks, toothbrush, and long phone cord. You are going to do great

William Trankle  Most of my prep was mental.  The physical pain, discomfort, weakness, etc, are all normal and largely out of your control, but how you are mentally going into surgery is a bit more difficult.  After my first operation, I had a bad experience getting my Blake tube pulled, and I also had an NG tube installed for 24 h to handle morphine-induced vomiting.  Thus, my first procedure recovery kinda sucked.  That made going into the 1st re-do more difficult, and it was fraught with its own complications that made it unenjoyable.  That meant for my second re-do, I was in the worst headspace, but it turned out to be the best recovery experience.  That was entirely because I had a surgical team and recovery team that knew what they were doing.  That is SO key.  Dr. Marc Gerdisch did my 2nd redo, and there was a ton of scarring that they had to dissect just to open me up, so make sure your surgeon has experience with re-dos!  Good luck.

Erica Archibald  That’s really good to know! I forgot about scar tissue.  That’s for sure a problem. I’m confident I’ll have a great surgeon and team. My head space is ok and I need to think beyond surgery to keep it that way.

Brian Leonard  if you dont have plaque or high cholesterol eat what you want  - otherwise listen to the doctors which will tell you to eat like a rabbit - the man thing is do not obsess /worry - you will get through this- I am nearly 4 years out now with new on-x valve 

Erica Archibald  Oh I have on-x valves already, AVR and MVR; 22years. I need a redo and being on Coumadin means no greens! It’s hard to prep for surgery with the INR complications. But it’s good to know I need to ask!

Rose Madura  Hi Erica, welcome.  What happened to your valves? You must have been very young when you got them. I'm sorry you need a redo. God bless you.

Brady Busch  When I was on Warfarin,they told me greens were okay,but needed to be fairly consistent to the time before.

Rita Savelis  I eat greens on anticoagulants. I eat everything in moderation and dose the anticoagulants around that. This is what doctors recommended and it works for me. I'm sorry that you have to go through all this again (I had double valve replacement 8 yrs ago). You barely look 22 - were you a baby when you had your first replacements? I don't think there is anything special you should eat or do before surgery.  Just keep moving and doing things you enjoy. Take care.

Luke Rodriguez  Me, like many others wonder how long our mechanical valves will last.  What precipitated your need for surgery so maybe, we can avoid a redo.  

Also, I have seen more articles on Sternal Fixation Devices...instead of wires, they secure your sternum with what looks like a breastplate.  Leaving link here https://mriquestions.com/sternal-wiresimplants.html

This is supposed to be much less pain than traditional wires...and much more stability right after surgery and faster healing.

Adam Pick  Hi Erica, Great question. While I have not had a "redo", I have done a good amount of research on this topic.  From what I understand, the key to a redo is finding a surgeon and medical team that is VERY skilled in redo procedures.  Not to scare you... But, redos can be a bit more challenging given scar tissue, etc.  Here's an educational video I filmed with Dr. Desai at Penn Medicine all about heart valve reoperations. Maybe there is something in the video that can help you and the other members of our community.  My thoughts are with you! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qsRRdEc-Mqk&t=1s

Terry Tannenbaum  Hi Erica, I agree with Adam and he is correct about re-doing the valve procedure; they are more tricky and require a skilled surgical team specializing in the complexities of the operation. The good news is that those teams are not rare but numerous. I just had mine done almost a year ago in N.Y.C., at Mt. Sinai. The results were completely successful. Interview several surgeons before making your choice. Best of luck-

Terry T. 

Diane Graf  Hi Erica, I had a redo on 7/20/23 at Hoag Hospital, in Newport Beach, CA.  I had my mitral and aortic valves replaced and also this time my aortic root.  My first surgery was 12 years ago at the same hospital.  Your question of what you can do physically to get ready for the surgery is get yourself as strong as possible, especially your legs.  The surgery wipes you out.  But they have some great recovery protocols now.  They had me sitting up right after the surgery and walking the next day, which really helped speed up the recovery.  Also, I  had rigid sternal fixation on my sternum.  I still have to be careful moving my arms, stretching, etc., but not scared that I will pull the sternum apart if I move the wrong way.  Overall, I feel much better and my strength and stamina are coming back quickly.  Good luck to you!

Robert DeVita  Wow, all this is very interesting for me as I had an ON-X Metal Aortic valve put in January of this year and the tissue has pulled away from a portion of the sewing ring. This has now created a moderate paravalvular leak which must be fixed. Most surgeons recommend waiting one year so the scar tissue from the first SAVR last January calms down. One surgeon says a full sternotomy is the only way to go but I am hoping they ban do a Hemi Sternotomy which does not require sawing the sternum and has a much easier recovery. Anyone hear anything about any of this ?Also, does anyone happen to know who the best surgeon at Cleveland Clinic for this type of procedure would be?

Erica Archibald  Thank you all so much for the info! It’s fabulous.  

Luke Rodriguez, nothing special happened as far as I know except time. I will have to ask what they find in there when they do the redo. I’m clicking away so the functionality is fine. Growth or obstruction seems to be the best guess

Robert DeVita  Thanks Adam for sharing this video! I have to have a redo after only one year out from SAVR for an aortic valve paravalvular leak and this has made me feel more comfortable with the risk !