Heart Bypass Surgery

In a message dated 9/8/03 7:51:35 AM Central Daylight Time, corameye@... writes: << Personally i am never sure getting the whole truth from doctors, I thought the explanation about the thickness of her heart and,all of a sudden her valve was not all that bad was a cover story. Stu, To really understand what her condition is / was, you need to get copies of all of her TEST results and learn a little about reading / interpreting them. For starters, did she have a Heart Catheterization? If so, ask about the blockages, namely the ones that were bypassed. What was the percentage blockage for each coronary artery? Typically they bypass when there are more than one at or above 90%. Angioplasty (and stent) is generally performed in the range of 70 to 90%. The Left Main is especially important. Anything over 70% just about guarantees a trip to the ByPass Surgeon, Do Not go angioplasty route. If the Left Main gets completely blocked, it's all over. The catheterization should also give pressure gradients across the valves from which it is possible to calculate effective opening areas. For the aortic valve, if the opening is less than 0.8 sq. cm, valve replacement is generally advised. These numbers can also be obtained from a non-invasive echocardiogram, similar to what is used to look at babies in the fetus. When a valve is nearly closed, internal heart pressures rise and the heart muscle has to work harder to pump blood, causing the heart wall to 'thicken'. This thickening may subside IF the cause is relieved 'soon enough'. Generally, when the numbers say it's time for surgery, it is better to proceed than to wait. Waiting only makes things worse. An 80 year old in poor condition will most likely have a longer / more difficult recovery than someone younger BUT, if the underlying problems were corrected, she should eventually see a significant benefit, especially if surgery was performed before permanent damage was done to the heart (such as having had a 'heart attack'). 'AL' (been there, done that, twice)