Posted by Dave Funderburg on December 15, 2002 at 17:44:52:
In Reply to: Re: new maze + replacement of mytal valve posted by Anne Rowthorn on December 14, 2002 at 10:04:37:
Gene,
I have to echo Anne's comments. Have your doctors exhausted all possibilities for a mitral valve repair rather than a replacement. I live in Atlanta where we have three of the best open heart centers in the country. Emory University Hospital, Piedmont Hospital,and St Joseph's Hospital. I had my mitral valve repair and MAZE at Mission St.Joseph Hospital in Asheville, NC by Dr.Harry Burton. I went to Dr. Burton because of his reputation for repairing the mitral valve and doing a replacement only as a last resort. He studied under Dr. Carpentier in France the inventor of the Carpentier ring for valve repair. None of the surgeons in Atlanta would make that level of commitment to a repair. My procedure took 7.5 hours and was the only thing on his schedule for that day and the valve was successfully repaired along with the MAZE procedure and a single bypass. Just a thought since I had so much difficulty in finding my surgeon. It is apparently much more difficult to repair a valve that it is to replace it with and artificial valve.
Good luck and God Speed