Bentall scheduled for 1/27 (BAV/AA)

This turned out much longer than it should have been - probably more for helping me process than real information. So the TL/DR is that I've got a BAV with severe regurgitation/no stenosis, an AA @ 4.6 cm, asymptomatic and no blockages. Going in for a Bentall 1/27 and getting the On-X.

The rest is just background though I would like feedback on others about the timeline the surgeon said is relatively normal and if how you fell on that timeline.

The surgeon gave me the following base time lines and I'm curious how it lined up for others:

• In the hospital ~2 weeks. This was from 3 of the docs who said that it may take that long to get the blood thinners tweaked.
• Driving ~4 weeks after surgery.
• Regular activities ~6-8 weeks after surgery with restrictions
• No restrictions after 3 months

I plan on doing cardiac rehab and, if my insurance pays for it, a home INR test machine.

********

Following is the novel of my life story. Read at your own risk ....

I've lurked for a while - since August when I found out it was time to start planning for the surgery. This sub has helped quite a bit. Can be a bit scary at times when reading about complications but, overall, has helped far more.

Background:

54 yo male in the US (GA). My first cardiology exam was back in 2020. I had just turned 48 which was the age my mom's dad died of a heart attack. And, well, when you hit the same number, it tends to make you more cautious. Echo then showed the BAV with mild regurgitation/no stenosis and the AA @ 4.3 cm. The doc's recommendation was to monitor with annual echoes. Echo this past August showed severe regurgitation and 5.0 cm. A follow up CT (this doc felt a CT was more accurate for measuring the aneurysm) showed the AA at 4.6 cm, not the initial 5.0 cm. And I'm completely asymptomatic.

Great doc - really happy with him. He wanted me to do a cath as well so that, as he put it "since we'll have the hood up, might as well fix everything we can." Fortunately the cath showed no blockages. He gave me 4 surgeons to talk to and when I asked him who he would want to work on his mom, he gave me one plus a secondary if the primary wasn't available.

I saw the primary with my wife and we both were very happy with him as well. Really nice guy - after spending a few minutes explaining my issues and what he would do address it, sat back and just let us ask questions until we ran out. He is one of the few in the area that does repairs and while he wasn't as confident that the valve could be repaired, he wanted me to see a couple of other surgeons who do repairs to get their opinions.

I met with the secondary (recommended by my cardiologist). While he agreed (for the most part) with the primary surgeon, he was kind of a dick and just really rubbed me the wrong way.

Met with the first surgeon the primary surgeon recommended. Also a great guy. He actually felt a repair was viable but would need further testing. When he said that it would still need to be replaced at some point, my wife and I just took it off the table - I didn't want to have it in the back of my mind as something to worry about. Beyond that, he was pretty much in full agreement with the primary surgeon with only minor deviations (not as locked in on the On-X and more open to the Regents).

Met with the second surgeon primary recommended. Same pattern - this is what's going on, what I want to do, etc. At this point it's old hat - been there for this already. The main difference is that he was much more pro tissue than mechanical. And said that if I want to get back into mountain biking, it absolutely had to be tissue as a crash on thinners would likely kill me.

At this point it was down to the primary and the first he recommended. And, honestly, it was a complete toss up - I liked them both equally. I met again with the primary surgeon - after 4 rounds with him being the first, I had a few more questions. I also asked him about the Ross and if I was a candidate. He didn't think so but got me connected with a surgeon that did. That surgeon reviewed my notes and felt strongly that at my age, I probably wasn't a good candidate as he felt very strongly that I would have to have the pulmonary replaced again and pretty confident that I'd have to have the aortic replaced, too.

I ended up going with the primary. He was closer to home and put my wife and I at complete ease. Like the title said, going in on 1/27. Going with the On-X.

Generally speaking, I haven't been overly anxious throughout the process. Don't get me wrong - I've had my moments for sure. Even had my wife take me to the ER because my chest felt funny, heart rate was increased and pressure up. Spoiler alert - it was nothing.

But as I'm getting closer, I'm getting more and more anxious about how much I've procrastinated getting ready for it. I had grand plans to continue working out and eating healthy which fell completely by the wayside. Plans to build out a home office for me to work from, write all my "just in case" letters, get things squared away at my job and with my wife. Now I'm scrambling, not sleeping all that great and just generally not a good headspace.

I'm not overly concerned about the surgery and if I come out of it or not. The odds are in my favor, my doc has done, I think, over 1500 of them and I've talked to one of his patients (met him here, actually). I AM worried about recovery - how long until I feel normal, how long pain will last, etc. Worried about dealing with the blood thinners. Worried that I'll constantly keep freaking out about any anamoly in my heart. The surgeon's office has referred me one of their therapists and I'm hoping to get in next week and just get some piece of mind. I have stopped worrying about the "just in case" stuff for the most part. My wife and I will go over stuff ahead of time - finances, things around the house, etc. - but generally I'm just looking at it as I'll be down a few weeks.

The surgeon gave me the following base time lines and I'm curious how it lined up for others:

• In the hospital ~2 weeks. This was from 3 of the docs who said that it may take that long to get the blood thinners tweaked.
• Driving ~4 weeks after surgery.
• Regular activities ~6-8 weeks after surgery with restrictions
• No restrictions after 3 months

I plan on doing cardiac rehab and, if my insurance pays for it, a home INR test machine.

Sorry for the length.