Curses
Finally got in touch with the cardiologist's office about the results of my echocardiogram, and I do have a bicuspid aortic valve (contrary to my doc's initial "no way" reaction). However all heart function appears normal right now and it's just sort of one of those things that isn't a problem until it is. Essentially it's a fairly common birth defect occurring in 1-2% of the population (most of whom probably don't know it). It can mean absolutely nothing (which is apparently where I'm at now), it can result in a thickening of the valve which results in stenosis (a constriction of the area that the blood passes through), or the valve could essentially stop being effective. Or the moon could fall out of the sky and the sun stop shining.For now, unfortunately, the results mean that I have no excuses to stop running, and telling Chris that I'm too weak to do housework isn't going to make the grade. They didn't set a timeline for specific follow ups that need to be done, but I figure every few years I'll check back in, unless I start showing signs of breathlessness, and getting weak in the knees when Chris is not around. Then I'll go back regardless of the timing.
posted by MyHusbandRules @ 10:38 AM
1 Comments:
Hi,
besides breathlessness, you need to be vigalant about increased fatigue, swollen ankles, chest pain, shortness of breath on exertion, dizziness and palpitations. These are all possible signs of trouble or progression. 9 years ago I was golden. My symptoms progressed with increased fatigue only and my body compensated for it slowly. I didn't even put 2 and 2 together. Thank God for yearly echocardiograms and visits with my Cardiologist. If it weren't for screening yearly, I'd be dead at age 40 instead of recovering from Aortic valve replacement and looking forward to a healthy future. It's a slow and silent progression. For great info. go to www.bicuspidfoundation.com. Best wishes.
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