I am 6ft 3 . Is this a possible explanation? In the simplest terms, a bicuspid aortic valve can be a serious heart valve disorder in which the valve only has two leaflets, or flaps, that control blood flow through the heart. 3. My question is: is it okay for me to participate in weight lifting with BAV? Join Vanity Fair to receive full access to VF.com and the complete online archive now. Yes, there are many athlete patients whove had operation for BAV/aortic replacement and returned to a variety of sports. We expect the current generation tissue valve to last at least 12-15 years before problems. I have been feeling better than before the surgery and I feel with better condition on the trails. Okay, thats greatbut I left feeling uncomfortable with the diagnosis. Its really not strenuous, maybe 10 km/h and not more that 10 push ups at once. It is very frustrating as my doctor would prefer to see me live the rest of my life with restrctions and have the aneurysm stabilized rather than take a chance on surgery and possibly returning to my normal lifestyle. He left it pretty vague. This valve repair option is one that might best be pursued at a center that specializes in this problem. Currently, it is estimated that about 5% of those with bicuspid aortic valve disease will experience aortic dissection. I exercise, eat well and keep my weight down. I am wondering because I know that weighlifting with bav isnt so good I feel terrible because i lov weightlifting and I have build a body that is so difficult for a 18 years old. My son will seek a repair when his conditions deteriorate. But I recognize that not all cardiologists or heart surgeons would agree. Thank you very much for the answer! Perhaps the doctor could contact the specialist and request an earlier appointment, if that made sense. It is two to three times more common in males than in females. Bicuspid aortic valve is associated with abnormalities in the coronary artery anatomy in about 2% of patients, including anomalous origins of the coronary arteries and upwardly displaced coronary ostia. For those with moderate aortic stenosis, the guidelines suggest restricting activities. The valve may also become stiff due to calcium deposits on the leaflets over time. "Thanks to the team at the Cleveland Clinic, I have a new aortic valve to go along with my new pulmonary valve from my last surgery," he wrote. While it was anticipated that a minimally invasive, transcather device would be used during the procedure, a surgical valve was ultimately used during an open-heart procedure using a median sternotomy. A bicuspid aortic valve is a congenital condition, meaning that people are born with two rather than the normal three cusps on their aortic valve. The numbness/tingling has me constantly worriedand the slight chest pains have me always thinking is that my BV or Aorta causing issues?. Im 37 years old male, live in Croatia, 191 cm, 94 kg, very athletic, practicing various sports my whole lifetime. It can also lead to aortic stenosis , and is more . I did cardio training 3 times a week and weight training twice a week for 60 years. The video is just 1 min 42 sec long. Should I increase amount of weight? Im highly considering this option, after 4 months of research and appointments with doctors. Im a 57 year old male who had aorta repair and porcine valve surgery 3 years ago. Im not sure I have all the answers from afar. How much exercise is too much for someone with a functional BAV? Thats the reason we try to place the largest possible substitute valve in patients who need replacement. And I dont know if my Cardiologist follows the same guidlines, but I dont think hes under the impression that Im any kind of athlete either. My son at 11 months was diagnosed with BAV. Thanks a lot for your answers. I dont think theres a way to predict the future in this circumstance. So far, none of the people that had the operation suffered any dissection. From afar, its hard to know what might be responsible for your symptoms. Interestingly, bicuspid valves are one of the most common forms of heart valve disease. Im 33 and I do jiu-jitsu. Here are stories of some celebrities with this condition: Not everyone who has a congenital heart defect knows about it, so its important to be vigilant about the health of your heart. Also is it possible to never need surgery to replace the valve and that the AR stays stable, or even goes away ? I am a keen weightlifter, which is the basis of this post. Body contact sports may pose some danger to athlete patients who take blood thinners. My heart rate some time is 100. This might reasonably translate into some measurable improvement related to physical exercise. Youll need to rely on your doctors for advice about your condition. Latifah has taken on her mom's caregiving duties, along with relatives and a nurse, whenever she is on the east coast. In some cases a particular arrhythmia that is responsible for your feelings of palpitations or light-headedness could be identified.and options for treatment could be presented. Only restrictions are no weights greater than 100 pounds or heavy contact sports. I would like to know more about your recovery timeline since you are so much further out from surgery than I amfor instance; how long before you could do long rides again; when could you do tempo efforts; start high heart rate intervals; and finally race again? I have repeatedly asked each follow up, if continued marathon training is OK. Im always told it is fine with the old adage of listening to your body. Sometimes it comes even when not exercising. Does the (unreplaced) aorta enlarge over time? I had my AVR almost one year ago. The American College of Cardiology (ACC) in conjunction with the American Heart Association (AHA) has issued guidelines for the evaluation, monitoring, and treatment of individuals with BAV: In my opinion, these are useful guidelines for athletes and non-athletes, alike. Finally, many patients are able to return to their sports after successful operation. Thank you for your ideas and I apologize for my gramma errors (English is not my first language). In addition to this public search, we scanned our proprietary research database of over 1 million sources and were unable to find any specific research reports that address your goals. He has mild AS and AR and is otherwise asymptomatic. So it is very possible to continue athletic activities after surgery. In late March, Schwarzenegger was heavily involved in a chess tournament with his donkey Lulu. Please help me . My son was just told he made the varsity basketball team as a freshman. Patients with BAV who have a normal size aorta, with no stenosis or regurgitation of the aortic valve, can participate in sports without restriction. I have found in my case( an athlete with bav)the typical response from doctors is, thats life, you cant do it anymore, be grateful for what you have. He wasnt real worried about me and I have regurgitation (mild) and (mild) aortic root dilation.. Do u think it would be OK to lift weights and if so maybe u could give me a better understanding. My consultant informed me that, because of my age, I would have a mechanical valve fitted which meant that I would be on warfarin for life and therefor not be able to play football. Any person in my family there was no problem with the heart. I have a call in to his doctor but what do you think? However, his ascending aorta has been enlarging: 11/27/13 31 mm (echo), 6/10/15 39 mm (echo), 7/8/16 41 mm MRI). Looking forward to hearing your thoughts. Bicuspid aortic valves are more common in men, but also affect women. Thats important to keep in mind. I get sporatic tingling in my left hand and footand every so often in my left cheek bone. Like I said, peoples experiences are all different. Also hypertension in both arms. Keyhole just refers to the type of incision used for conventional valve replacement like you had. Im 39 also diagnosed with BAV when I was 31. Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70808. I have read that strength training is beneficial for heart health. My resting HR is 60-70 BP 110-70, according to doctors have no tissue problems, never had hypertension and was told that I was born with weak threskupid valve. Vanity Fair may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. Perhaps you could organize such a visit for a 2nd opinion regarding safe levels of exercise? I have appointment with a cardiologist on Friday but in the meantime i would like to know weather in case of surgery a replacement of the valve is definitely necessary or my condition still allows some options for a surgery without replacement. However, is there any advantage to having them screen in their first decade of life, if they are not showing any symptoms? His whirlwind romance with Katherine Schwarzenegger has resulted in a rather large ring on her finger. However, randomized, controlled trials have excluded bicuspid aortic valve (BAV), which is the most frequent congenital heart disease occurring in 1% to 2% of the total population and representing at least 25% of patients 80 years of age or older referred for aortic valve replacement. I have almost everyday all day shortness of breath which follows with chest pain and discomfort. What he did say is there are no signs of stenosis, and my heart looks very strong. Think to report back to let us know how things go for you, personally. Activities are not usually restricted for athlete patients with mild aortic stenosis. Over time, there will be some patients who develop problems with the prosthetic heart valve or enlargement of some portion of the aorta (that hasnt already been replaced) that requires operation. While I do expect to have a replacement done later in life, the repair was the best decision I could have made. I had a Bentall with mechanical valve done in Feb 2017. In April of this year (2016), I discovered I had a BAV in the worst manner possible. It sounds like youve gotten conventional advice regarding sports where there is a risk of bodily injury. Aaron Boone (@AaronBoone), famous baseball player suffered from Bicuspid Aortic Valve. Ive thought that the next visit to the pediatrician would be a good opportunity to discuss the issue. As of Monday, my BP at the echo appointment read 115/66. Routine endocarditis prophylaxis is . that suffer from heart valve disease along with a link to the reference story about their heart valve disease and their Twitter handle can be found below: ), the famous American television anchor, suffers from, ), the Olympic Gold Medalist (Soccer) suffered from, ), a comedian and broadcaster, suffers from a. Now, fully healed thanks to two stents in her arteries, Lucci is spreading the word. Arnold Schwarzenegger opted against a mechanical valve replacement and chose a tissue valve because he felt a mechanical valve might limit his physical activity and capacity to exercise. Schwarzenegger visited USC on April 16, 2007 and saluted the new Cardiovascular Thoracic Institute (CVTI), according to a press release issued by The Keck School Of Medicine at USC. . Women are 50 percent more likely to be given a wrong diagnosis after a heart attack and are at a greater risk of dying within a year of a heart attack than men. Tyler. 2. In practice, the indications for aortic valve replacement for severe aortic stenosis or severe aortic regurgitation are straightforward and uncontroversial. Celebrities With Heart Disease - Celebrity Heart Health Survivors. I just want to know what things I will see change so that I dont look past the change in my valve and miss my window to get the valve replaced. Arnold Schwarzenegger (The Governator) - Heart Valve Replacement. I have wife and two small boys, I wanna live to see my grandchildren. Reply. Have been told to keep away from exercises that strain me, ie heavy weights. Keep us posted! After an MRI, Ive been diagnosed with BAV and mild aortic coarctation. First, Id encourage you to follow your doctors advice. Prescriptions for safe exercise will need to be carefully tailored to your particulars. This award-winning website has helped over 10 million people fight heart valve disease. Or usually lead a normal life? The idea of somehow restricting the HR may be attractive as a means of curtailing strenuous activity. Consensus guidelines suggest restricting activities in athletes with BAV and aortic diameter >4.0 cm. However, my problem is that if I can train at this pace then I can still run but I certainly cant compete! I had an exercise tolerance test recently and they seemed happy with my results so fingers crossed thats a good indication I can carry on training hard! My 25 year old son was just diagnosed with BAV AR (3+). Every 6 months it is getting larger. From your standpoint (and your sons), it will be important to have that dialog to sort out whats safe. Apparently this can work better than Losartan? Im hoping you can help with some guidance. I just thought it was muscle strain., My body cleared the blockage itself, said the game show host, who credited the aspirin he was taking for what he thought was simple muscle pain. So unfortunately it sounds like i am part of that grey area. The incidence of normally functioning bicuspid aortic valves is 0.6% to 0.9%.5 . These operations can sometimes enjoy the benefits of each of the operations you mentioned.and avoid done of the down sides. (bicuspid aortic valve), singer Bret Michaels (atrial septal defect), and even 'Survivor' contestant Whitney Duncan (ASD). I think you understand the guidelines correctly. "Women are the natural caregivers; we take care of everyone else under the sun," she says. Often times, especially for patients with tissue heart valve replacement devices, the valve simply wears out. Also, my next appointment is, unfortunately the week after my next marathon (which I will be pacing and not racing). This is an unfortunate situation for the athlete patient because the consensus guidelines do not yet recommend operation, yet advise against strenuous sports activities. I was just curious if there any way to know if my valve is affecting my times at all? In my early 40s I thought that I was getting out of breath more than I should and eventually began to feel weak or nervous during a game, but only on Sunday. But like a lot of women, I thought that heart disease was an old white guys disease," the former talk show, 56, host tells PEOPLE. But Ill check it as soon as possible. March 6, 2023, Erin Feaker It has served me well enabling me to live the vigorous, full, complete life you are all so familiar with. I was disappointed [when I was diagnosed]. A cadaver if valve is then used to replace his pulmonary valve. Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window). The heart has a difficult time coping with extra demands of exercise. Me, i`m nearly 43, male and have BAV. At issue are the potential long-term effects of repeated episodes of high heart rate and high blood pressure that accompany intense exercise. 1. I would really like for people to not have to experience what I had to experience, she continued. These are the data I got in my last MTB race. Barb. A 2nd opinion might help by bringing another set of eyes and ears to your problem. I am perfectly happy to stick to the 10km max distance for races, but my key concern is that if I do run some faster training sessions then I might have a sudden death. The confusing thing I hear is some cardiologists telling BAV people not to life over x lbs. Thank you for nice article. Yoga is not included in the classification of sports that is commonly used, but I suspect that yoga would have low to moderate static and dynamic components. Ordinarily, we reserve operation for patients with severe aortic regurgitation who have some decrement in the LV function. In March 2018 he underwent emergency surgery to have this replacement valve replaced. In your experience how long are we talking before I have to have surgery and do beta blockers really help in prolonging the need for surgery. The fusion (sticking together) of the valve leaflets causes abnormal valve opening and closing. Hi Larry, To no surprise, people are worried about me running tomorrow. Heart disease and stroke are the number one killers of women, Streisand, 74, told PEOPLE about why she helped found the organization. Negative Stress Echocardiography I dont train a lot, like 2k bike, 500k run and 100k swim yearly and few competitions sprints and one half IM in a year (32 years old).