Hi. I am new to this and have just learnt that I need surgery to repair or replace mitral valve. Scary does not do it justice. Looking for any help or advice from anyone who has been through it- how to prepare physically and mentally, what to expect afterwards. Any help would be greatly appreciated. (also type 2 diabetic).
Thanks.
Hello Beatles1956
Welcome to the forum, I can understand the feeling of this can’t be happening it’s a very scary place you have found yourself looking into, but I can tell you it’s not as scary as our imagination makes it. I am 5 years on from Aortic valve replaced and bypass I was 68 never had any health issues and my body was letting me down. Like you came as a huge shock.
You will be given instructions to follow after surgery no arms above your head no lifting anything heavier than half a kettle of water and no pulling or pushing movements. This is to let your sternum to heal 8-10 weeks.
You won’t have any pain they really make sure of that , if there is anything you need to ask there are so many of us who have been where you are now so just ask and someone will be along to help.
I was very sick before my surgery I was in hospital for 7 weeks before being transferred to the heart hospital, but now have my life back every day I am grateful to the medical team that gave me a second chance.
Remember you are now a member of the Hearties family and someone will always be here to listen or lend a shoulder to lean on if that’s what you need.
Best wishes Pauline
Thank you so much, Pauline. It just seems too much to take in at the moment. I am making lists of questions to ask when I see the surgeon, and stuff to get done before I go in.Glad to hear that you have your life back.
Hello , try no to worry ahead. Honestly this bit is the worst part of your journey . Once I was admitted for my op , and realized how amazing the staff were , I relaxed a bit , and realized I was going to be fine .I'm 73, and 3 months ago had my aortic valve replacement and an enlarged part of the aorta blood vessel in my chest replaced. I got through it no problem.
The Doctors and Nurses will be wonderful , you'll get 24 hour attention , and they are so skilled and caring .&
You'll be given all painkillers you need .
Just remember it's a big deal for us. but it's an operation that's been done for over 40 years and it's really perfected now, and to the Doctors it's just a routine op.
They are used to treating patients who are diabetics, so you'll be looked after very well .
The best of luck , and any questions you have as to how to prepare beforehand and how to manage after you op. keep asking here for support. The hospital will probably give you a booklet with lots of advice .
Thank you very much for your reply. I particularly like the idea of a booklet, hopefully it will answer a lot of my questions.
I'm sure it will . My hospital had a number you could ring to speak to a cardiac support nurse as well.
Dear Beatles1956Had my aortic valve replaced May 2020. By far the worst bit is waiting for the op. Luckily I was so ill that a lot of the waiting time went over my head.
Pauline and Isobel have given good advice. I would add that it is almost essential to have someone to look after you when you leave hospital. You really will not be able to dress, cook and run your household for some weeks.
I bought myself an iPad and used the hospital stay to learn how to use it, I stayed in hospital for three days pre op, but that was April 2020 when covid was running wild. I imagine you will be called as an outpatient for three pre op tests. Once the tests are complete things will happen quite quickly.
Best wishes
Colin
Thanks, Colin. My brilliant wife will be looking after me when I get out.
Love the Beatles handle!I think Pauline's covered it so not much more to add. My hubby had a quad bypass in 2018 and our little grandchildren love to talk about it even now. I can only say what I say to my grandkids aged 4 and 6 now. Grandad had a poorly heart so they opened up his chest (they always ask to took at the 'war hero scar') and mended the pump so grandad is all better now!!
I joined this forum so I could get some advice and they lovely people here helped so much.
I'm sure you'll have more questions before and after the procedure so keep on posting.
My hubby got his life back and so will you!
We had a booklet too!!!
All the very best to you. Sending love and virtual hugs. Jan xxx
Thanks, Jan. I'm sure my grandson will want to poke my scar when he is older.
Just be a bit careful how you pick him up after the op!Arthur, our grandson was 1 when hubby had his bypass in 2018. He found the scar intriguing. Arianna our grandaughter was 3 and was very inquisitive!!! She couldn't wait to describe it to her friends in her nursery school!!Hope you've had lots of good advice on this forum. Keep us posted.
Love and hugs. Jan xxx
Hello, I had my mitral valve replaced on 10June after many years of very gradually worsening regurgitation. I’m 52. I feel so much better already.
Ask a lot of questions! Eg what type of surgery, what meds you’ll be on immediately after and long term, mechanical or tissue valve, how likely they are to repair instead of replace (that likelihood is different for everyone). When you have your pre-op assessment the nurse will talk through a lot of details. Check out the BHF website for info.
If you think of other questions call your surgeon’s secretary and ask for a callback - I did that a few times and the doctors called back to answer questions by phone.
Speak to your GP and see if any of the doctors in your practice are particularly knowledgeable - I found that mine knows a lot about heart surgery and also happens to be on warfarin herself and so was able to give me some insight.
Accept any offers of help from anyone you live with or family or friends. Get your home looking nice and comfortable beforehand so it’s nice to come back to. Do some batch cooking for the freezer so you have easy meals available.
Post-op, take all painkillers on offer. Do all the breathing exercises they tell you. Do all the walking they tell you.
Make sure your local cardiac rehab service gets in touch with you and use it - it’s a great service - you speak to a cardiac nurse, a dietician and a cardiac physio and they keep in touch with you to see how you’re doing and they offer exercise classes (some are online depending on covid) and there are also specialist cardiac psychologist available if you/they think you need it - I have taken up this offer and it’s great. You can find your local service here:
cardiac-rehabilitation.net/...
Above all be patient and kind to yourself, patient with recovery, ask questions and ask for help.
If you have any other specific questions do ask here. I hope that helps and best wishes.
Hi Jocastina. Lots of really useful advice there. I won't need to worry about cooking etc. as my wife takes good care of that. Lots of other stuff to get sorted before I go in though.
Hi, not much more I can offer, other than reiterate, it's not anywhere near as bad as you think.
I'm a little different in that I was much younger and my first two ops were expected/planned, but, the same questions apply nonetheless.
Choose wisely on the type of valve, tissue or mech, I've had both and there is a fundamental difference between the two that will have a bearing post-op.
Plan for post-op, recovery will be quicker than you might realise. You haven't had a heart attack and everything that goes with it, so whilst your body will take time to heal, the heart itself will be fine. Set yourself targets/events to do.
After my first AVR, we moved house four months later, and I spent the next few months, doing all sorts of building works.
Third time around, we bought tickets for a Stranglers gig, 5 weeks after AVR/MVR. I went to that and two weeks later a PL football match, walking up 120 steps to the seats.
You'll be surprised what you can do.
First up, ask questions, turn up for the op, listen, take the meds on offer and you'll be back to normal before you know it, all the better for the experience.
Be positive and best wishes.
Heed
Hi HeedThanks for that. You mentioned "choose wisely"; I thought it was the surgeon's decision what happens. Do you get involved in the decision?
Hi, Someone may be able to correct me if I'm wrong, but as far as am I'm aware you still get to choose either a tissue or mech valve. Certainly a question to ask the surgical team very early on.
Personally, I had the choice on each occasion I've gone through surgery.
Hopefully, they can repair the valve, so type won't come into it. It made no difference to me last time out, my Aortic was replaced, but, they managed to repair the Mitral, which was already a replacement.
That's probably a decision they'll make on the operating table. Either way, it shouldn't affect your recovery.
I went in for Mitral valve repair or replace 3 years ago, whilst in the anesthetic room it was discovered that my potassium levels were VERY low, the anesthetist said he could not be sure to be able to wake me up! I was put under a light anesthetic and my heart was checked, it was discovered my tricuspid valve was also leaking. It was decided to keep me in and feed me potassium for a week. I wakened up in ICU and spent a night there, I was very well treated and it removed my fear of going there after surgery One week later I went to theatre, I had keyhole surgery, I spent 3 days in ICU then 5 days on the ward as I had an external pacemaker which they couldn't get my heart settled. I was eventually discharged and went home. I have to say that I didn't know how poorly I was before my operation but soon realised how much better I was. Mine is not a typical story I don't think but believe me it was worth it. The staff were very kind and helpful and made my stay bearable. Don't worry God bless you x
😟 glad to hear you have it all sorted.
The worst bit for me was that the nurses were too busy to give me my toast at 5am before my afternoon surgery! The rest was better than I could ever hope for. Just takes time to recover and do as you are told.
Everyone here is so helpful, recurring theme is to do as I am told. Thank you for the reassurance.😃
Sure it is a major op, but your life after recovery will be wonderful. I had mitral valve repair December 2018 aged 78. Cardiac rehab exercise that has morphed into at least 2 days/week at the gym. Never went near a gym before the op. Can play bowls for 3+ hours at a time. Before the op struggled to walk 100 yards.Yes you are apprehensive, but don’t worry, surgeons and cardiac nurses are marvellous
Thank you. 😃
I had mitral valve repair and procedure was no problem at all. Afterwards asap WALK as much as you can. This can prevent atrial fibrillation which you do not want. Plus after the opo felt a little depressed for no reason. I was told to expect this but it wasn,t good.
Thanks for that, something else to keep in mind. I will certainly do as much walking as I am allowed to.
Hi Beatles1956.My husband had Mitral Valve repair last year, they also found once in theatre he needed the Tricuspid valve repaired too.
His surgeon told him before the operation that until he opened him up he wouldn’t know if he needed repair or replacement. He was also given the choice pre-op as to whether he wanted tissue or mechanical if replacement was needed (they informed him what the choices meant). He was also told that because he’d had AF for quite some time it was unlikely they would be able to reverse that and they would perform another procedure (sorry I can’t remember the medical name of it) whereby they closed up a couple of little pockets within the heart where blood can pool and form clots. This procedure would give him a much better chance of not developing blood clots moving forward because of the AF.
When he found out he needed surgery it was a total shock; for months the GP had been treating him for chest infections and changing his asthma meds thinking that was the reason for his breathlessness. Eventually a locum checked his pulse, discovered Atrial Fibrillation and from there he discovered he had a severely leaking MV. It was a huge shock and unfortunately he continued to deteriorate whilst waiting 18 months (the wait in part due to COVID) for the operation.
He was really scared when he went in last June; the operation, COVID, no visitors.
However, the staff were wonderful (as they were in the build up too) and the surgeon and his team amazing. He did quite badly from post op delirium, which I think is quite common, and it kept in him ITU for an extra couple of days but once he got some sleep he quickly recovered from that. Once back on the ward his recovery was rapid. He made friends with others, as they were all recovering from similar procedures, and in the same boat regarding no visitors. I think they kept each other’s spirits going and they still keep in touch!
He had no pain post op and did everything he was told; I made sure of that as I’m sure your wife will! 😁
Please tell your wife to look after herself too as it is an emotional time for both of you and she will be caring for you afterwards so try to rest when she can; it is pretty exhausting at first.
Do start your walking, taking it gently and increasing daily. My husband was so pleased with how quickly he started to recover post op and only then did he see how poorly he had become before the operation.
He is now doing things he just wasn’t able to do for sometime before diagnosis, honestly it’s given him a new lease of life!
He still has AF and is on blood thinners but is grateful he was moved from Wafarin to Rivaroxaban (not sure if spelling sorry!)
He recently had another echocardiogram and everything is working perfectly and they have now discharged him.
Couple of tips:
1) we purchased a ‘wedge’ shaped pillow very quickly online when he returned home because pillows just didn’t do the job of helping him to be comfortable enough to get any sleep or sit comfortably during the day. It can be turned to prop you up more or a more gentle gradient for sleeping. Worth every penny. Rest when you need it particularly when you first get home, the first couple of walks will take it out of you.
2)spare compression socks, I have to admit from the whole experience taking and putting the socks on and off was the worst 😂 they aren’t easy but once you’ve got the knack it does become easier 😁
3) take your phone in hospital and a powerbank for simple recharging. The staff were very good and would help with putting his phone on charge too. It also meant we could call or FaceTime and so could the family.
4) heed the advice about not lifting anything more than half a kettles worth of water for the time they tell you, getting the sternum to heal is really important. When my husband went back for his post op check up they were extremely pleased with how well his had begun to heal but I’d made sure he’d followed that advice!
5)button fronted tops for post operation to make it easy for dressing and undressing, making it more comfortable and you can be dressed but leave a few buttons open if you wish to ease any rubbing on the wound.
6)if you drive, wait until you are given the ok before you restart, my husband was told by one of the surgeons to use a small pillow under the seat belt for a while to protect the sternum if having to suddenly break. My husband found this very useful information and gave him some confidence once he did get behind the wheel again.
Sorry for the extremely long reply, we are both very grateful for the difference the operation has made to my husband and the wonderful NHS. I know it’s scary, it wouldn’t be natural if you weren’t a little concerned but believe me it will be so so worth it.
Best wishes for the future.
Hi DoodlebugThank you so much for all the useful tips and information. I have added a few of your tips to the list of things to discuss when I see my surgeon, and also other stuff to do. I will be looking out for the wedge pillow and small pillow for driving.
Thank you again for taking the time to pass on the information, it is much appreciated.😀😷
I’m glad you found it helpful.
The Wedge shape pillow was from Amazon. The small ‘pillow’ for driving was simply a hand towel folded inside a pillowcase (as used initially in hospital, we just continued that idea at home for the small pillow).
Best wishes.
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