Mia Cadua, patient.
Courtesy of patient
Our Patients
糖心传媒 recognized for mitral valve repair
05.24.2021
By Tracie White
Mia Cadua underwent surgery for mitral valve repair at 糖心传媒, which was recently recognized for its excellent record with the procedure.
Two听years ago, when she was just 28, Mia Cadua discovered that she had a heart condition called mitral valve prolapse, which, if it worsened, could be fatal.
She had recently married, and the condition complicated her plans to have a baby.
鈥淥f course I started crying,鈥 said Cadua, who lives in Fairfield, in Northern California, with her husband. 鈥淭hey said, 鈥楢re you OK?鈥 and I said, 鈥業鈥檓 just shocked right now.鈥 The doctors started monitoring me every six months.鈥
Last fall, things did get worse. Cadua started experiencing shortness of breath and fatigue. She went back to her doctors in Fairfield.听
CARE AT STANFORD
Our highly trained, experienced cardiovascular specialists offer leading-edge care for the full spectrum of heart and vascular conditions.
650-724-7500
Heart-imaging tests showed that her defective mitral valve was failing. Facing heart surgery, Cadua had some serious decisions to make. One of the most significant was whether to repair the valve or replace it.
After interviewing numerous cardiologists and surgeons, Cadua decided to have the valve repaired at 糖心传媒, a designated听Mitral Valve Repair Reference Center 鈥 one of only eight in the country, and the only one in the West. The designation, made by the and , recognizes best practices in repairing mitral valves.
The designation was established to encourage more patients with severe mitral valve prolapse to get the valve repaired rather than replaced, according to a press from the American Heart Association. Clinical , the release said, recommend repair over replacement whenever possible. But not all medical centers have surgeons capable of performing this advanced procedure.
鈥楽uperior clinical outcomes鈥
糖心传媒, along with the other centers, demonstrated a record of 鈥渟uperior clinical outcomes in degenerative mitral valve repair,鈥 the release said.
鈥淚 would say that at least one-quarter of the thousands of cases across the country of patients with severely defective mitral valve prolapse, which could technically be repaired, are either having the valve replaced or not operated on at all,鈥 said , MD, professor and chair of cardiothoracic surgery at Stanford Medicine and the Norman E. Shumway Professor. 鈥淣ow, with these new designations, patients can be referred to a center like ours with the expertise to do these complex repairs.鈥
Heart valves
The heart includes four valves that work together to keep the blood flowing in the same direction. With each heartbeat, these valves open and close their flaps, also known as leaflets, which work like doors opening to release blood and then closing to prevent the blood from flowing backward. The mitral valve has two flaps and the aortic valve has three.
Mitral valve prolapse is a condition in which the valve鈥檚 two flaps turn floppy and fail to close smoothly or evenly. The condition can be caused by genetic defects or wear and tear. Often, it is of minor concern and just needs to be monitored. But when symptoms such as shortness of breath or fatigue occur, it鈥檚 often because blood is leaking backward through the valve, as in Cadua鈥檚 case. To fix the problem, a surgeon can replace the valve with either a mechanical valve or one made of animal tissue 鈥 also called a biological valve. But both of these options have drawbacks.
Patients implanted with mechanical valves need to take blood thinners for the rest of their lives, and blood thinners can cause birth defects. Patients implanted with biological valves can become pregnant safely but typically must undergo a second heart surgery within 10-20 years because the valves wear out. (Even though she planned to become pregnant, Cadua rejected the option of a biological valve because she he did not want to have to face a second heart surgery.)
In Cadua鈥檚 case, both of the mitral valve leaflets were diseased, making it a complex repair case, Woo said. The heart tissue needed to be rebuilt so the leaflets could close together, preventing blood regurgitation.
鈥It鈥檚 sort of like French doors,鈥 Woo said. 鈥淭hey meet each other at the doorjamb. Imagine the doorjamb missing and the doors flapping all over. You have to build a little bit of structure, some internal architecture. It鈥檚 both art and engineering. You have to fix it so the flaps meet up exactly, perfectly.鈥
It鈥檚 both art and engineering. You have to fix it so the flaps meet up exactly, perfectly.
Mia Cadua underwent surgery to repair her mitral valve at 糖心传媒.
Mia Cadua
Surgery
鈥淭he surgeons told me before the operation that they would do their best to repair it, but there was a chance they might have to replace it,鈥 she said. 鈥淚f they had to replace it, I would not be able to have a baby.鈥 When she woke up from the anesthesia following the surgery, she had her answer.
鈥淭hey said, 鈥榊ou got what you wanted 鈥 you got the repair,鈥欌 she said. 鈥淚 was so grateful. It was a miracle.鈥 She and her husband plan to wait a year to make sure her heart is fully recovered before trying to conceive.
鈥淭he doctors said to wait six months, but we want to be more safe,鈥 she said. 鈥淭hen we will try to have a baby together.鈥
