Nancy's Profile

I was diagnosed with Flash Pulmonary Edema 12/19 and was hospitalized. I have had a heart murmur since my teen years. I had felt fine until my hospital admission which was scarey. No mention of valve issues until weeks later when I was told you need a new heart valve. It took weeks to get a cardiology referral. I found a great cardiologist Dr. Valles who arranged an evaluation with the structural heart team. I had a scare with high troponin levels which was caused by micro tears in my heart from the bad aortic valve. The heart team recommended TAVR as I ended up having no other defects, no blockages and nothing else to fix via surgery. They felt I have room for a large valve which lends it self to valve in valve in the future. I am 60 and low risk but happy to take advantage of the option of TAVR. I was ready to go when Covid -19 hit and then my insurance denied the procedure. There were several tense weeks of waiting for phone calls and becoming more symptomatic as well as stressed out. After several denials, TAVR is scheduled for 4/8 and I will be on my own with no visitors due to Covid -19.