Cindy just sent me this great email. Given her unique story, I thought you might really enjoy it.
Hi Adam,
I have written you before about the recovery from heart valve surgery. We exchanged emails about when you really felt healed. Last year, I had mitral and tricuspid valve repair by Dr. David Adams in New York [...]

read more from this topic.....

Some really interesting patient stories continue to fill up my inbox. Here’s a great one from Don about his new mission saving dogs after mitral valve replacement.

Don Hull, Heart Valve Replacement Patient, With Hooch
Hey Adam,
I recently regained my Special Issuance Class III FAA medical certificate which allows me to fly my airplane as a private [...]

read more from this topic.....

This is quite interesting…
When Doris Snyder celebrated her 102nd birthday on August 10, she was that much closer to the expected birth of her first great-granddaughter who’s due to arrive early September. She is very excited about the milestone, which might not have been possible were it not for a cutting-edge, experimental procedure that replaced [...]

read more from this topic.....

I always enjoy reading patient success stories. However, this update really made me think, “Fannnnn-tasssss-tic!”. Specifically, I like the way Chaz utilizes a “Before and After” approach to describe his heart valve replacement experience:

Hi Adam:
It has been awhile since I have written you, but I still avidly follow your magical blog.
Last week, I began my [...]

read more from this topic.....

As Dr. Allan Stewart wrote to me, “We did it!”
“It” was the New York City triathlon.

Dr. Allan Stewart (Surgeon) with Greg O’Keeffe (His Patient)
The “We” was…

Dr. Allan Stewart, Director of the Aortic Valve Surgery Program at New York-Presbyterian Hospital / Columbia Medical Center, and
Greg O’Keeffe, Dr. Stewart’s patient who had aortic valve replacement just [...]

read more from this topic.....

This is a special guest blog by Greg O’Keeffe. I thought you might really appreciate hearing about Greg’s recovery, Dr. Stewart’s unique connection with his patients, and their combined athletic and charitable efforts. Here is what Greg wrote me:

Dear Adam,
The first time I teamed up with Dr. Allan Stewart, I was in an operating room [...]

read more from this topic.....

If you have yet to visit our new social network, Heart Valve Journals, I would encourage you to stop by. Since launching this new community, thousands of patients and caregivers have used this online network to meet, support and stay in-touch with each other.

At 22 years of age, Trevor Nelson is one of the younger [...]

read more from this topic.....

Typically, I try to keep anything with political or religious overtones outside of this blog. However, every so often I find myself touched in a way that forces me to bypass this approach (pun intended). That said, earlier today, my sister sent me this inspiring video about Baby Gabriel that warmed my heart and flushed [...]

read more from this topic.....

At 92, Kato Pomer recently became one of the oldest, highest-risk patients to receive the MitraClip, a new minimally invasive treatment for severe mitral regurgitation, at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center.

Kato Pomer, 92, Mitral Valve Repair Patient

Thanks to Karen — one of Kato’s three daughters — I was fortunate to meet and interview the psychiatrist-psychoanalyst, the [...]

read more from this topic.....

In a very short time, Heart Valve Journals has become an online epicenter of patient-to-patient communication specific to heart valve surgery. Using this free Internet tool, patients can share their experiences while engaging in meaningful discussions with other patients around the world.

Ros Hernmarck – Mitral Valve Repair Patient
Recently, I clicked upon the interesting journal of [...]

read more from this topic.....