Ascending Aortic Aneurysm

My fiancé discovered he had a ascending aortic aneurysm in May of this year. At first they had him in the 'Watching and Waiting' period since they thought it was only 4.5cm. A CAT scan a month later revealed it to be 5.1cm in the arch of the valve. Much much larger than they thought.

Needless to say, we were pretty scared. We're both under 40 and neither of us ever thought we'd have to deal with heart related problems this early in the game! He's fit and takes care of himself, but had issue with high blood pressure. We were all set to go on a scuba diving vacation on a liveaboard when his GP found a heart murmur, which led to the discovery of the aneurysm. So yeah, no diving for him until he gets that sucker fixed. At least they caught it before we were out of the country, scuba diving 4 times a day for a week, on a boat in the middle of the ocean. Who knows what kind of damage that could have done. His GP could have very well saved his life since he barely goes to the doctor at all.

His cardiologist sent him to see a surgeon 2 1/2 hours away. We have a very good Sacred Heart hospital here, so we were really confused why he sent to a different hospital so far away. The surgeon there suggested that he would need surgery in a few months. Due to the size and location on the valve he'll have to have a graft or an option of a mechanical valve. He didn't really like the guy and surgeron seemed rather 'Eh' about the whole thing. They only talked for 15 minutes before he sent him on his way. He's currently waiting 3 weeks to see a local surgeon at the Sacred Heart, since he's on vacation, which is driving him nuts. Hopefully they'll do another scan of his arteries when he does finally see him. At 5.1 he feels like a ticking time bomb and the thought of having a huge scar down his chest gives him the chills. He's glad once he finally has the surgery, he'll be fixed for good and go back to diving again. He was currently enrolled in college, so he'll have to take the fall semester off and perhaps even the spring if has too, which really bummed him out.

Luckily everyone is sending him lots of positivity and good thoughts. His poor mother is nervous wreck and very gloom and doom, telling him how aneurysms can burst at any time. (Jeez, thanks mom)

Right now we're researching what his recovery will be like. I know it won't be easy, but any suggestions on what I can do to make him comfortable at home, I'm all ears! I hate not being to do anything for him at this point.

I haven't had my AA repaired yet, but I had open heart surgery to replace my aortic valve replaced 3 years ago at 36. I had endocarditis at the time, so we couldn't repair the AA. I went with a tissue valve.

Recovery wasn't to bad. I went home 4 days post-op. My hugest suggestion is to stay on a pain management schedule. even if you think you don't need it. And even set alarms at night so you can stay on schedule. This allows you to be up and around. The more you move around, the faster you heal.

I climbed steps at 2-3 weeks unassisted, went back to work at 5 weeks, ran a mile at 7 weeks. Was back on a bicycle at 4 months (have to wait for the sternum to completely heal).

My scar isn't super noticeable 3 years later. You get so use to it. No one has noticed and asked me about it since that first year when it was red and fresh.

I'm super active and sometimes at the gym I'm proud of my scar sticking out. I'm like yeah, I just freaking did that AND I have a prosthetic valve, what's your excuse.... :)

Post Edited (jdiane) : 8/4/2015 9:32:01 AM (GMT-6)

He decided to go for it and do next week on the 26th.

Last month I was diagnosed with a 4.2cm ascending thoracic ectasia, and significant heart disease with extended sections of 60% blockage. I also have had episodes of AFIB, recurring deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and TIA's. Nuclear stress test shows exercise induced hypertension, systolic of 228. I take xarelto for the AFIB. I'm an active biker, resting heart rate of 39 and blood pressure of 110/85. My cardiologist has me taking imdur for the blockage, since the nuclear test showed insufficient blood flow to some parts of the heart, and no other action other than to wait for a future follow up to see the rate of change of the ectasia. I have read that imdur should not be taken when extasia or aneurysm are present. Has anyone heard similar?

Hello I am new to forum. Two years ago at age 63 I was having some frequent PVCs (which have subsequently resolved) and went to see a cardiologist. On the echo. he found a 4.2 cm 'aortic dilatation' at the base of the aortic - a ascending thoracic aneurysm which has subsequently been confirmed by MRA. I was told to avoid strenuous exercise and little else that I can remember. I was told that we would evaluate situation retrospectively. which meant wait. they wanted me to wait a year for another echo. At about 6 months I freaked out enough to get another one. For the last two years the dilatation has been stable thank G-d. I was also put on metoprolol to avoid the 'shearing effect' and another doc suggested baby aspirin as an anti-inflammatory- since aneurysm formation is a type of inflammation. I would like to share advise with others in this boat. It is a little scary and there seems to be a lack of hard core good advice. Also I would love to hear from anyone that had the surgery and see how they did!!

hi everyone -
I've just signed up here - 59 years old and found out just before Christmas I have an ascending aortic aneurysm - measuring 4.4cm. I had a routine annual physical before Thanksgiving, which luckily included a chest x-ray, the results of which revealed an enlarged aorta - which then brought a referral to a cardiologist. He ordered both an ultrasound and a CT scan - which showed the 4.4 cm AAA. I'm currently on a "wait and watch" period until the end of April/early May - which at that time I should be getting another CT scan. Should I ask for an MRI and see my insurance will cover it? These past 2 weeks have been a bit tough - I'm 6'3" tall, and about 238# - relatively good shape and moderately active - mostly walking and yard work. I was a casual smoker - about a carton/month, but quit as soon as I found out. I'm looking for advice as to how to keep myself from stressing out - my blood pressure and cholesterol are ok, no real symptoms other than when I feel a weird little something, and then mind starts to freak out a bit.
Any suggestions on how to cope these next 4 months as I wait for the next test? I have a couple vacations planned in Feb + May where I'm planning on hiking a bit - in elevations from 4000' in Feb to 9000' in May - should I be worried? My cardiologist says not to worry - but from what I have read in 2 weeks - I see I'm not alone with my concerns. Thanks for reading this far - and for any suggestions - especially for Cardio surgeons in the Phoenix area.

Post Edited (joe f) : 1/6/2016 11:28:28 AM (GMT-7)

I wanted to post an update - after about 4 weeks of a lot of wondering about myself and my 4.4cm AAA - I decided to do more research on line finding what I could. Nothing new really, but I have decided to not just wait until April/May for another CT scan - and I have an appointment with a different cardiologist at Mayo Clinic here in Phoenix. I'm looking forward to meeting with him, and bringing my ultrasound images as well as the CT scan from the end of December. The doctor has residence experience at Stanford and John Hopkins - so I feel good about his credentials. I'll post back after my app't in 2 weeks.
We all need to relax is what I keep hearing
thanks for listening.

stevellen -
thanks for the post/reply. The more I read about this AAA - the more I think it may have come from a bad car accident I was in back in 1973 when I was 17. I had multiple fractured bones and lots of other injuries - it's possible that an injury to my chest was missed at that time I think. I'm looking forward to seeing what this second cardiologist says - and if all goes as I hope - I think I may want to make this new Doc my primary cardiologist. As to size of 5.5cm - that what what I was told also - or an increase in size of 0.5cm in 12 months. I'm feeling better knowing I have a second opinion coming next week.

That is wonderful news! I bet you feel so much better!

joe f - thank you for all your info. Can you give me the name of the surgeon you saw at Mayo. I too live in the Phoenix area - and have just been diagnosed with a 4.6x4.9 AAA. Has me very worried/anxious about the wait and watch process. I was also told 5.5 is the magic surgery number.

Any words of encouragement to ease my mind would be welcome. Haven't even told my kids yet, spouse doesn't seem concerned. Trying not to be too down about it!! Thanks so much

Hi all. Just signed up. I am 83 and just found out in Dec. that I have an ascending aortic aneurysm 4.5. I just had another ct scan 6 months later and good news, no change. My Dr. said I would not need another for a year. I asked him what I could do as far as activity and he said what do you want to do. I said I want to have sex, play tennis, and go dancing. He said have at it. I did not ask him about weight. I do like to lift some weights so I will ask him about that. Some one asked if person's size had anything to do with size of aneurysm as far as surgery goes. The answer is no. 4.5 is 4.5 regardless of one's body size. My Dr. told me that he does surgery when it gets to 5.5. Thanks for listening

Hi KevinW & welcome to Healing Well. Sorry to read what you are dealing with. The good news is your problem was caught before something bad could have happened. When you say you have high BP was this a recent diagnosis too? Very important to keep the BP under control, high BP can take toll on the heart valves over time.

Yes, you are right about the drs all having various opinions about when to do surgery. You can get a 2nd opinion to see what another dr thinks of the situation. When looking for medical info on the net I stay with reputable places like the Mayo Clinic as an example. At least I know the info is reliable because there is so much garbage out there. about all it will do is scare a person to death. Dr. Google is never right, lol.

Take care.