Hi all. My relatively healthy mother has been advised by the ER cardiologist to have a heart valve replacement. There was an article last year in the NY Times that this operation is expensive and causes other problems especially in the very old. Any experience with this?
Her symptoms are difficulty breathing, weakness in her arms and fingers, raspy throat.
Anyway listen to Mom not me I roll up into a ball of anxiety with every procedure and insist on general anesthesia for everything.
Is it risky?
Of course everything is?
Is Mom in reasonably good health for her age?
Sounds as though she is.
Is she competent to make this decision?
Sounds as though she is?
Does it matter what her PCP thinks?
No he is not a cardiac surgeon and you don't trust him anyway.
What is your greatest fear?
Of course loosing Mom no getting round that but right now she needs your support.
Now I am just going to pull a blanket over my head and try not to think about having to face something similar in the future.
Make a cup of tea first and watch the humming birds at the feeder. Distraction, it works wonders.
I think because of the type of operation it is, and the fact that she is generally healthy other than the symptoms caused by a bad valve that it may be worth the surgery. She may, like my friend, feel like she has a new lease on life.
You should talk to the doctor and make sure you take his advice. Ask specifically about the type and amount of anesthesia and how this can be minimized as I would think this would be the riskiest part of the procedure.
Angel
njny: Your Mom is exactly like Mom and you and I feel the same way. Bring on OUR counselors for the next decade!
Mom has befriended the managers where she lives at the Indep Living Senior apts. There are new managers there and I met with them and Mom today. The women explained to me Mom's financial status at the Coolidge and we discussed ways to look at how Mom will pay for the TAVR operation. They pointed us to SHINE to learn about insurance options and how to find out the total estimate from the hospital after Tuesday, when they do the important test with a catheter to see if veins are blocked.
Funny moment today: sitting in the office with the managers, Mom kept interrupting me and putting me down. They wanted me to continue talking. "Well! why doesn't somebody tell me to just shut up?" she asked, trying to sound ambiguously amused and also challenging us.
"Very well, " said the manager. "Shut up and let your daughter talk."
The assistant to the manager, Julie, offered to take Mom to the appt on Tuesday and even to stay with her for a few hours. I have to work so I was mega relieved. Plus Mom is tons nicer to anyone but me and even if she is nutso with fear, she'll at least won't be mean because I won't be there for her to scapegoat on. I'll get her later in the afternoon, if it's possible.
Tomorrow we visit her primary doctor, who I can't stand. So I'll have to bite my tongue while we hear what he thinks. Usually he flatters Mom and allows himself to be manipulated by her. I go as the third, unwanted wheel, asking intelligent questions which annoy them both!
health.clevelandclinic.org/2014/10/tavr-procedure-safe-for-elderly-with-aortic-stenosis/
If not, that's the first step. She/he would know what other co-morbidity issues there are and what the best chances of survival and recovery are.
Frankly, I wouldn't rely that much on newspaper articles, even if the reporter was reliable. Reporters aren't medical people; they don't have access to someone's medical records, and they can't make judgments or projections. They can report generally but I'd look to your mother's treating physicians for guidance on survivability.
See All Answers