4 ms·
I had heart surgery 2 months ago to repair my mitral valve. In the lead-up to that, I had to make a decision what to do if it turned out replacement was needed
by philiplu 1y ago
I had heart surgery 2 months ago to repair my mitral valve. In the lead-up to that, I had to make a decision what to do if it turned out replacement was needed instead of repair. Choices were metallic valves requiring me to be on warfarin the rest of my life or pig-derived valves. I chose the latter, mostly to avoid warfarin for life, but also because my surgeon was a PhD for work on creating biological-derived valves that didn’t trigger the immune system. Just mind-blowing what can be done. But I’m glad repair and not replacement worked out - and I now have GoreTex fibers attached to my valve.
- ACCount37 1y agoGoreTex being the brand of a material that was put into your heart sure sounds amusing.
- ChrisMarshallNY 1y agoAt heart, he's a GoreTex™ guy. I'll just get my coat...
- philiplu 1y agoI’ll have to remember that one
- ggm 1y ago> I'll just get my coat And what fabric is that coat made of?
- ChrisMarshallNY 1y agoSheepskin (the “I’ll get my coat” reference is from The Register).
- mkl 1y agohttps://theregister.com https://theregister.com? It's much older than that.
- ChrisMarshallNY 1y agoI am not surprised, but that's where I learned it.
- wombatpm 1y agoPig and cow valves will calcify and fail eventually. But it’s a slow process so you have time to plan and make decisions for replacement. Mechanical values are great until one day the clicking sound stops and you need to get to a hospital ASAP. Back in the 90’s there were a series of values where the flipping plate shattered-sending shrapnel into the heart and beyond. Typical failure mode is stuck open which is survivable. Stuck closed is very bad.