When some parts of the heart, like valves, fail to function properly, heart valve replacement surgery or repair surgery is required. Surgeons mostly perform aortic or mitral valve replacement surgeries, fortunately, most of them end successfully. Further, in this exploration, let’s know more about heart valve replacements, which is the most commonly replaced valve, and why it is replaced.
How Does Heart Valve Perform?
Simply said, heart valves prevent blood from flowing backward in the heart and are in a flap-like structure. Valves’ role is to ensure that blood flows in the right direction. The heart will find difficulty pumping blood when a person’s heart is damaged. Common symptoms of heart valve issues include:
- Fatigue
- Mild headaches
- Dizziness
- Improper breathing
- Pain in the chest
- Inflammation or edema
Late heart valve replacement surgery, you may go through infection, and bleeding, but with proper treatment, you may heal those wounds. Read further to know more about heart valve replacement surgeries, why they are necessary, and what to expect.
When Should You Do Heart Valve Replacement Surgery?
Your health care provider will suggest you undergo heart valve replacement surgery when your heart valves are damaged and not working properly. The types of heart valve replacement are:
- Aortic valve
- Mitral valve
- Pulmonary valve
- Tricuspid valve
Even at times, these heart valve surgeries are performed on more than one valve. However, the most commonly performed heart valve replacement surgeries are aortic and mitral valve replacement surgeries. Simply, doctors will perform heart valve replacement surgery when your heart valves are narrowed, if they are leaking, or if blood flows backward.
Doctors will use mechanical, allografts (tissues harvested from the donor’s heart), pig valves, or cow valves to perform the heart valve replacement surgery.
What Does The Heart Valve Replacement Surgery Involve?
Usually, healthcare providers will suggest the Ross Procedure for a damaged aortic valve. During the heart valve replacement surgery, the affected aortic valve of an individual will be replaced with a pulmonary valve, and their pulmonary valve will be replaced with a donor valve.
Heart valve replacement surgery requires open-heart surgery. Also, transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI), is less invasive. Now some newer technologies have emerged, like robot-assisted procedures, and they are also less invasive. Before suggesting a procedure to patients, doctors will consider the following factors:
- Age of a person
- Health status
- Severity of symptoms
- Which valve requires replacement
What Are The Procedures That Will Be Carried Out Prior To The Heart Valve Replacement Surgery?
Preparation will be completely based on the type and severity of your valve condition. Before the open-heart surgery, a patient will have a meeting with the entire medical team to discuss the steps involved and the complications. This process will be carried out in most of the hospitals before heart valve replacement in Coimbatore.
Usually, patients will stay in the hospital, the day before heart valve replacement surgery, to have blood work and other testing done. Notably, patients are not supposed to eat later midnight prior to heart valve replacement surgery day. Then you will be taken to the surgery room after shaving the surgical area, and you will be given a sedative to relax yourself. Finally, before the heart valve replacement surgery begins, the person will be given general anesthesia.
What Happens During The Heart Valve Replacement Surgery?
In open-heart surgery, the patient’s chest will be opened to replace a damaged valve. During the heart valve replacement surgery, the medical team will pause the heart for 1 hour and employ a heart-lung machine to continue circulating blood in the individual’s body. Later, when the doctors close the incision, the patient will be taken to the Intensive Care Unit.
The next famous heart valve replacement surgery is transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI), this procedure doesn’t require opening your chest and is minimally invasive, this process involves placing a catheter via the affected artery and placing a healthy, new one inside it. Benefits of TAVI include,
- The heart and the tissues surrounding it will not undergo physical trauma
- Less chances for infection
- No longer hospital stay
- Shorter recovery period
What To Expect After Heart Valve Replacement Surgery?
Post-open-heart surgery, a person will be observed in the ICU for 2 days, later they will be taken to the regular surgical unit for up to 5 days. Typically, the recovery period takes several months. The recovery period will depend on various factors, including their general health and age.
It is normal to get back to normal activities not long after heart valve replacement surgery, your healthcare providers will recommend you avoid high-intensity activities and take many days off from work. Also, a patient will experience fatigue later in this invasive surgical procedure. Several people feel that they regain their strength as they resume daily physical activities.
Most probably all the procedures are successful, whereas few people may require one more replacement in the future. So just visit the Cardiac Surgery Hospital Coimbatore.
Bottom Line:
Whenever an individual heart valve gets damaged, the person may revise after undergoing heart valve replacement surgery. For instance, if a doctor finds it difficult to repair the damage within the valve, he will suggest replacing the valve. Simply said, there are several factors from overall health to age complications which will determine the type of heart valve replacement surgery to be performed on the individual.