[greenberetTFS]

I just got this recent opinion from a very creditable doctor on what my chances are,unfortunately it obviously wasn't what I had hoped but it's truthful and that's what I respect about him......

The blockages are pretty high up, and when they occlude, it will impact large portions of your heart. That makes it an almost gotta do. That is the coronary artery bypass part.The troubling part is the aortic root involvement. If he can swing a graft around that part, you should be good to go. This is the troubling part: I believe your doc is concerned about getting in there only to find out that the aortic graft can't be done. The tissues will be very friable ( weakened), and delicate to the point that nothing can be attached. The walls of the aorta become hardened, and break instead of flexing. These little pieces are what flow downstream to create other issues. It also makes it difficult to suture things to.

There is a lot to think about here. If all goes well, you will feel a lot better. Your cardiac ejection fraction of 40% is not all that bad, mine was less than 10% at one point. You will see changes in the amount of fatigue you feel. More blood flow will make a big difference in how you feel.

The ultimate fix here, would be a heart lung transplant. I don't know if he has talked about that much , but it could be an option if all else is good.

I was turned down by the chief cardio surgeon at the hospital I was at because he said he didn't have the equipment necessary for a "Off Pump" Coronary Bypass.... That simply means the heart will be beating thru out the surgery and the heart-lung machine will not be used.......I'm going to see the chief surgeon of cardio surgery in southern Louisiana tomorrow and see if he'll take me.......If not,there is a brother who has offered to help me here in Mississippi who knows the cardio surgeons in Biloxi-Gulfport and hopefully I'll find one who won't feel my operation is too risky...

Big Teddy