Joe's Profile

In 2018, at the age of 31, my gastrointerologist detected a heart murmur which turned out to be a bicuspid aortic valve with severe regurgitation. It's a blessing my GI doctor found it. I received monitoring for about a year and on June 3, 2019, was referred out to a local surgeon. The local surgeon I initially consulted with was concerned I had pulmonary hypertension and an enlarged root. Thankfully my CT, echo and heart Cath came back good of course, other than my bicuspid valve and regurgitation. After saying prayers, doing my homework and making some contacts on the American Heart Association, the Lord pointed me in a direction. I have settled on the Cleveland Clinic and I'm looking forward to meeting my surgeon and his team and making a operating room plan. Im in the waiting room with a date scheduled. My next decision is a tough one being 31 years old and deciding between a mechanical or tissue valve. This community is a blessing and I look forward to being able to learn, answer questions and both give and receive support along this journey!