Hi everyone, I have decided to post these here since I love this group most.

[icymist]

My Heart Condition
An update, and for those just finding out, what's going on with me.

Greetings friends,

For those who didn't know about my condition, a slight heart murmur detected back in September of 2018 has led to many tests and meetings with cardiac specialists which brought about the discovery of a problematic heart valve. It needs to be replaced and I have chosen Virginia Mason hospital in Seattle to have this done. It has also been determined that I have clogged arteries as well and they are to be addressed at a later date. Due to my life long dealings with birth defects (a lot of you don't know I have these) special considerations have been met for the surgeries with my cardiac team. For those who are unaware of my birth defects; I was born with IA/ARM which stands for imperforate anus /  anorectal malformation which, despite having many surgeries throughout my childhood, still give me problems. Because of the later it has been decided that the best approach to replacing the heart valve is a transcatheter aortic valve replacement.
Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) - Mayo Clinic

After a lengthy period of time for this surgery being held up by my dentist, I finally have been approved to move forward. This kind of operation is usually performed on older folks, 70 – 80 years of age. I am 60 and will be one of the first to get this kind of surgery. The type of valve I will be getting is a biological one and length of life expectancy is unknown with younger people. (I sure don't feel like a 'younger person', but c'est la vie!) There will be a low risk of a stroke and a 10% chance of winding up with a pacemaker.

On March 15 I will be going to my pre-op visits with the cardiac nurse, the anesthesiologist, and to get labs done. The surgery will happen on April 2. I may be home the next day if I can recover fast enough. If not then 24 to 72 hours later. The clogged arteries will be addressed sometime after that. And there you all have the saga of the heart surgery! I will be posting more updates when I know more.

links of interest:
https://www.google.com/search?q=imperforate+anus&spell=1&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi8j9r4gNjgAhVPop4KHayfAXUQkeECCCsoAA
https://www.google.com/search?q=anorectal+malformation&spell=1&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiZ79OggdjgAhVCop4KHX0iB0EQkeECCCsoAA

https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/transcatheter-aortic-valve-replacement/about/pac-20384698