Thanks to the successful and much-publicized surgeries of Robin Williams (actor/comedian), Barbara Bush (former First Lady of the United States) and Aaron Boone (professional baseball player), the world seems to better understand the challenges and opportunities of patients faced with aortic valve disease.
However, the patient community is often confused by the diagnosis of heart valve disorders including aortic stenosis.
Reports suggest that 250,000 heart valve surgeries are performed each year. It is believed that this number will surge as 76 million Americans, in the Baby Boom generation, reach sixty years of age through 2024.
Many of the patients I speak with have very little knowledge about the severity of their valvular disorders prior to surgery, notes Adam Pick, author of The Patients Guide To Heart Valve Surgery. For this reason, I am attempting to educate the public about the progression of heart valve disease (e.g. mitral valve prolapse).
To help future patients and caregivers, Pick developed a special blog that addresses the realities of heart valve surgery. As a double heart valve surgery patient, Pick was shocked to learn that his blog has become one of the leading resources for heart valve surgery information on the Internet.
I never expected this type of response, states Pick, Im thrilled to see this little website transform into a thriving, caring community of patients and caregivers that actively support each other. You can visit Adams Heart Valve Surgery Blog at http://www.heart-valve-surgery.com/heart-surgery-blog/.
Recently, Pick has focused his writings on the diagnosis of heart valve diseases including aortic stenosis and mitral regurgitation. In one of his latest blogs, Pick reveals the key factors (gradient, valve area, velocity) and guidelines used to segment the three categories of aortic stenosis.
My research indicates that patients need, want and deserve an advocate to help them through the physical and emotional journey of heart surgery, Pick states. If I can help them at the front-end of the process, with the diagnosis, I believe the patients and caregivers will be more proactive throughout the surgical and the recovery phases of cardiac surgery.
The medical community appears to be in full support of Picks actions. His book and website are actively referenced by surgeons at The Cleveland Clinic, the University of Southern California and Mount Sinai Hospital.
Many patients are benefiting from Adams work, notes Dr. Vincent Guadiani, Senior Cardiac Surgeon at Pacific Coast Cardiac & Vascular Surgeons. Over the past 25 years,Dr. Gaudiani has performed over 10,000 heart surgery operations.
Adam Pick is a double heart valve surgery patient and author of The Patients Guide to Heart Valve Surgery. Adam also founded www.Heart-Valve-Surgery.com to help patients and their caregivers better understand the challenges and opportunities of heart valve surgery from the patient perspective. This unique website provides over 1,750 pages of complimentary information (videos, patient stories, and recovery tips, clinical research) to support patients before, during and after heart valve surgery. Mr. Picks work is often referenced by leading surgeons at The Cleveland Clinic, the University of Southern California Medical Center and Mount Sinai Hospital. You can contact me at adam@heart-valve-surgery.com anytime.
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