Todd's Profile

I had been having a dry cough for some time and decided to see my primary physician. I had an Xray to check my lungs, which were ok, some blood work, and the doctor mentioned that she heard a murmur—which was news to me. She requested for me for an Echo/EKG which confirmed my mitral valve prolapse and regurgitation and on top of it, the blood work determined that I had a blood infection and endocarditis. The Echo/EKG showed that I had mitral valve prolapse and regurgitation and was determined to be moderate to severe. After being almost immediately admitted to the hospital for the blood infection, 6 weeks of antibiotics later, I am ready to move forward in the next steps with my mitral valve. I am 52 and in good shape, playing soccer a couple times of weeks, exercising, and eating somewhat healthy. I wasn’t having any noticeable fatigue issues or heart issues, just the dry cough which was more irritating than anything. So why me? My surgeon told me, “Dumb luck”. He gave me two options. Since I really wasn’t having any major issues, I could continue life as normal, monitor accordingly, but probably end up having other heart issues and most likely surgery in the future. The other option was to have Mitral valve surgery which he was confident that he would be able to repair the valve coming in from the side of my ribs versus through the sternum. Of course there was a slight chance that once the surgery had begun, the valve would have to be replaced. I decided at my age, having surgery now versus later, would probably be the best, both physically and mentally. I had my heart catheterization yesterday, 2/8/22, and the results came back great with a strong heart and no issues with any of my arteries. With my scheduled date for surgery on March 3, 2022, my anxiety is slowing starting to increase with each passing day.