Originally Posted by
GeorgeBMac
By 'congenital', I assume you mean that you have had it since birth -- so you've lived with it for at least 50 years if you're on this forum.
Is it getting worse? Is it stopping you from doing something that is important to you? Does it pose a danger?
It is getting worse. We actually found it last spring because I was starting to have chest pain and some irregular heartbeats. I'm noticing I'm getting more winded than I used to for the same activity level. A few weeks ago on a ride with a friend we were only going about 11 mph and I sounded like I was doing wind sprints. Earlier this fall I pretty much abandoned running due to the problem, which is discouraging because I actually enjoy running more than biking.
My cardiologist said that it's not uncommon for this problem (aortic stenosis) to go undiagnosed until later in life. The malformed heart valve can keep up for a while, but then starts to wear out and that's when the symptoms appear.
And confession time: I'm actually only 43. However I saw the thread title show up in the cross-forum "New Posts" search results, and because I had the exact same questions about the same procedure, I joined in the discussion even though I'm a bit under the age limit. Hopefully I won't get kicked out because of this.
