The Patient’s Guide to Aortic Valve Replacement
With an increase in the stress, tension and dietary changes there has been a rapid rise in heart problems which has even led to replacement of the aortic valve that is responsible for controlling the flow of blood out of the left ventricle of the heart to the body’s main artery. The aortic valve opens to allow blood to flow from the heart out to the rest of the body and then closes to stop any blood leaking back into the heart. However Aortic Valve Replacement surgery is now being used when the aortic valve becomes narrowed and obstructs the flowing of blood or the valve leaks and blood flows back through it into the left ventricle. With the help of the surgery this valve is replaced so that your heart functions in a proper manner.
Symptoms of Aortic Valve Disease
Aortic valve is an essential part of your heart and therefore can lead to serious consequences if it doesn’t functions as required. Aortic valve replacement surgery is therefore done to replace the valve when it has narrowed or it starts leaking. These narrowing or leaking conditions might take place due to aortic valve diseases.  Disease of aortic valve can however be congenital or acquired but there might also be other causes like rheumatoid arthritis, chronic inflammatory disease, lupus, syphilis, hypertension, aortic aneurysms, connective tissue disease, tumors and drugs or radiation. The initial symptoms of the disease includes fatigue, easy tiring, loss of energy, swelling of ankles, palpitations, shortness of breath, chest pain and dizziness or loss of consciousness.
Diagnosis of Aortic Valve Disease
It is necessary to get your health checkup done frequently in order to ensure that all your internal organs are functioning properly. The diagnosis of the disease can be done by your doctor as there would be a murmur sound which represents turbulent blood flow across the abnormal valve but it can only be confirmed by echocardiogram which allows the doctors to visualize the heart valves and determine the severity and possible cause of aortic valve disease. In most patients a probe with gel is also placed on the skin of the chest to transmit the images in order to visualize the valve. Sometimes a probe can also be passed through the mouth to the esophagus to visualize the valve and accordingly diagnose the disease.
After being diagnosed with a disease of aortic valve your doctor might suggest you with aortic valve repair or aortic valve replacement. Based upon your results of diagnostic tests, structure of heart, age, presence of other medical conditions the doctor would accordingly advice regarding the repair or replacement. Minimally invasive heart valve replacement is done by making a cut in the chest to access the heart. The heart is then stopped and a heart lung bypass machine is used to take over the circulation during the operation. The aortic valve is removed and replaced with an artificial valve and the heart is them started again and the incision in the chest is closed. The replaced valve can be mechanical which is made out of man-made materials or biological made out of animal tissue. This surgery is done is the symptoms are severe and the risk of heart failure arises. This surgery is absolutely safe and is ideal for those who have been diagnosed with the severe symptoms. This surgery would help your heart function more efficiently and thereby assist you in taking over your daily activities. It is however necessary to always consult your doctor prior going in for any surgery or medication.