Heart Repair Facts

When you tell someone you are having heart surgery the first reaction is...."WHAT?"  This is the reason I have been hesitant to share with the world that I am having the hole in my heart repaired.  Let me back up and start from the beginning. 

I have suffered from migraine headaches most of my life.  My earliest memory of headaches is from when I was 8.  I had a horrible headache that would not go away.  It lasted most of the day and I remember crying and asking my mom what could be done.  We tried a dark room, a cold cloth on my head and even medicine,which I was not good at taking and would "gag" down.  It finally went away after a blessing and I went to sleep.  Since that time I have had migraines that ranged from minor irritation to excruciating pain associated with changes in my vision, difficulty speaking, facial numbness and numbness in my hands and legs.  They are always worse when my body is in stress.  Pregnancy, loss of sleep, surgery, marathons or strenuous exercise.  I have always had these so I ignored them and chalked it up to me being me.  Apparently, it wasn't normal.

A few months ago, my mother found out that her brother that passed away waiting for a lung transplant had a Patent Foramen Ovale or PFO in his heart.  This means that as a baby the valve that goes between the top two chambers of the heart or atrium never closed.  This valve is open in a fetus to allow blood to flow from the mother to flow through the body without going to the lungs for "cleaning" and oxygenation.  When babies are born this valve closes and circulation of the heart becomes normal.  This is the case or about 75% of the population.  However, I am finding that 25% of us have varying degrees of closure.  When my Uncle's doctors found his PFO they told him it was hereditary.  They told him to inform his family, as it could be a possibility for them as well.  Since that time, Martha, another aunt and my mother have both found they have PFO's or Atrial Septal Defects (AFD) as well.  Martha had hers fixed in March.  Anna, my mother, did not need hers repaired.  Although she has a ASD it is not large enough to repair.  Mine on the other had is quite large.  They range them in size from 1-5.  Anna's is a 2,  mine is a 5+.  This means that the blood  and that should go from my heart to my lungs to be cleaned oftens goes right back out to my body.  Blood clots and other impurities that would normally be cleaned up can go through the hole and are a concern as they can go anywhere in the body.  If they go to the brain, you have a stroke.  If they go somewhere else, they can cause other problems.  I have had other problems and feel lucky that I have not had a major debilitating stroke.  I have heard sad cases of some that have not been so lucky.

To make a long story short, I was training for a triathlon to complete before my 40th birthday this fall.  As my training schedule got more difficult, my headaches got worse.  I had a weird "bruise" on my earlobe that looked like a weird birth mark or peticiae, when blood vessels break under the skin.  It went a way but concerned me.  I was doing what I could to alleviate them.  Sleeping well, eating good, and taking a multivitamin.  I was seeing spots behind my eyes after standing up, or running a hill, or even coughing.  I knew something wasn't right.  Reluctantly, I put my triathlon aside, and went to the Dr.  She prescribed a echo cardiogram.  This showed a "borderline enlarged right atrium."  Because of the nature of my job, I deal with a lot of medical health issues.  I have heard of PFO's before and thought I fit some of the symptoms.  While researching PFO's on line I found that that was one of the indicators of the heart working harder than normal. 

My Dr referred me to a cardiologist.  I have a good friend I grew up with that is a cardiologist, Dr. Scott Hacking.  He prescribed echo cardiogram with bubbles. This means they put CO2 in an IV and see if it goes from one chamber of your heart to the other on ultrasound.  Immediately after getting the bubbles, I started seeing half of things.  This is a normal indicated for me of a migraine.  I saw the bubbles go across the atrium and was relieved.  My symptoms were not just in my mind.  Scott referred me to Dr. Sherman Sorensen.  After some additional testing, they found that the bubbles which simulate blot clots go to my brain.  I am at a high risk of stroke.  I also have a blood disorder, Anticardiolipin syndrome.  This syndrome makes me clot more easily and was one reason I lost Rhett.  After talking with Dr. Sorensen, I found that the hole in my heart could also have been a factor.  I just cried on the way home from this appointment.  My life has been spared numerous times.  Through five pregnancies, c-sections, liver surgery, and four marathons, I have not stroked out.  I am still healthy and able to be a vital part of my family.   Yes, I have an angel baby.  But he also saved my life and Luke's life by his existence. Nothing is a coincidence.  The Lord watches out for us individually.

So today, they are mending my broken heart.  Ha ha,.  I will have an angiogram type procedure to feed a filter or umbrella type device to my heart.  The procedure will take about an hour and then I will be in recovery for another two.  I will spend the night at the hospital and come home in the morning.  Dr. Sorensen and his staff have preformed 10,000 of these with fewer complications than you can count on two hands.  I feel very confident that things will go well.  I have had a blessing and that gives me solace as well.  The Lord will be watching out for me and I know I am in good hands.

Tracie