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Transcript

What Is the Risk of a Second Aneurysm Repair? · From Recovery to Wellness | Life After Heart Surgery, Aneurysm Repair & Cardiac Healing

• 0:07
  Hello, and welcome back to From Recovery to Wellness.
• 0:11
  I'm Arnita, your host, and I'm so glad you're
• 0:13
  here. For our first -time listeners, this is
• 0:16
  session four, our final session of 2026. Since
• 0:20
  I talked throughout the first three sessions,
• 0:23
  I thought it would be beneficial to address some
• 0:25
  of your questions and concerns regarding aortic
• 0:28
  aneurysm dissection repair, recovery from open
• 0:32
  -heart surgery, and general heart health questions,
• 0:35
  which were inspired by the conversations, concerns,
• 0:39
  and questions shared by members of our aortic
• 0:41
  aneurysm, open heart surgery, and cardiovascular
• 0:44
  disease communities. If you have any additional
• 0:47
  questions, please feel free to DM me and I will
• 0:51
  include them in this session, which will run
• 0:54
  till December 31st. So if you have any questions,
• 0:58
  I'll provide answers at the next podcast episode
• 1:01
  after I receive them. But before we begin, I
• 1:05
  want to offer an important reminder. The information
• 1:09
  shared in this podcast is intended for educational
• 1:12
  purposes only and should never replace the advice
• 1:15
  of your physician, surgeon, cardiologist, or
• 1:18
  health care team. Every person in every recovery
• 1:22
  journey is unique. So always consult your health
• 1:25
  care providers regarding your individual medical
• 1:28
  care. With that said, let's dive into your question
• 1:31
  for this segment. Our question for today is regarding
• 1:38
  the risk of a second aneurysm repair. One question
• 1:42
  of concern that I wonder about is what is the
• 1:46
  risk of a second aneurysm repair? After aneurysm
• 1:50
  repair, many survivors wonder whether they'll
• 1:53
  ever need another procedure. In this episode,
• 1:57
  we explore what medical experts say about the
• 2:00
  possibility of future repairs, why lifelong imaging
• 2:04
  surveillance is often recommended, and the factors
• 2:07
  that may increase the likelihood of additional
• 2:10
  treatment. We discuss differences between open
• 2:13
  surgical repair and endovascular repair. The
• 2:17
  importance of blood pressure control and why
• 2:20
  follow -up care remains a critical part of long
• 2:23
  -term aortic health. One question that many aneurysm
• 2:27
  survivors ask is, if I've already had an aortic
• 2:31
  aneurysm repair, what is the risk that I'll need
• 2:35
  another repair in the future? The answer is a
• 2:39
  little more complicated than a simple yes or
• 2:41
  no. For many people, aortic aneurysm repair is
• 2:45
  a durable, long -lasting treatment. They may
• 2:48
  never need another procedure. However, healthcare
• 2:51
  professionals generally agree that aneurysm survivors
• 2:54
  should continue lifelong follow -up because some
• 2:57
  patients do require additional treatment later
• 3:00
  on. And why, you ask? Because the repair fixes
• 3:05
  a specific section of the aorta, but it doesn't
• 3:08
  necessarily eliminate the underlying factors
• 3:10
  that contributed to the aortic aneurysm in the
• 3:13
  first place. For example, some people have ongoing
• 3:17
  aortic disease, connective tissue disorders,
• 3:21
  a history of aortic dissection, uncontrolled
• 3:24
  blood pressure, or other conditions that can
• 3:27
  affect different parts of the aorta over time.
• 3:31
  In these situations, a new aneurysm may develop
• 3:35
  elsewhere along the aorta or additional enlargement
• 3:40
  may occur in a segment that was not originally
• 3:43
  repaired. The type of repair also matters. Some
• 3:51
  patients undergo open surgical repair using a
• 3:54
  synthetic graft. That's what I had for my aortic
• 4:00
  repair, a graft that's been put on top of the
• 4:03
  aneurysm. Others have a minimally invasive procedure
• 4:08
  known as endovascular repair, often called EVAR
• 4:12
  or T -VAR. Now I had the EVAR, about six months
• 4:17
  later after the graft they had to go back into
• 4:21
  my groin and then put the stents in because I
• 4:25
  had a kink in my my my my arteries in my groin
• 4:30
  at the bottom of my aorta and so I had to have
• 4:35
  that as well. It was non -invasive so it wasn't
• 4:40
  like the open heart surgery or the open aortic
• 4:46
  repair that I had six months prior. But both
• 4:50
  approaches can be highly successful, but each
• 4:53
  requires follow -up imaging to ensure the repair
• 4:56
  remains stable. In patients who undergo endovascular
• 5:00
  repair, healthcare providers continue monitoring
• 5:04
  for issues such as endoleaks, graft movement,
• 5:08
  or enlargement of the aortic aneurysm sac. Although
• 5:12
  these complications are uncommon, they can occur
• 5:15
  years after the original procedure. For survivors
• 5:18
  of aortic dissection, additional procedures are
• 5:22
  sometimes needed because other sections of the
• 5:25
  aorta may enlarge over time. This is one reason
• 5:29
  specialists emphasize lifelong surveillance imaging.
• 5:33
  The encouraging news is that modern follow -up
• 5:35
  programs are designed to detect problems early.
• 5:38
  often long before symptoms develop. Now, the
• 5:43
  2022 ACC slash AHA aortic disease guidelines
• 5:48
  recommend ongoing imaging after aneurysm repair.
• 5:53
  Depending on the type of repair and an individual
• 5:56
  situation, imaging may be performed annually
• 6:00
  or at other intervals determined by the healthcare
• 6:03
  team. Now, I will say That I do have this year.
• 6:10
  This is year three for me since my my aortic
• 6:15
  dissection repair and This year. I've just been
• 6:20
  released to get everything checked annually because
• 6:25
  at first it was like three months then it was
• 6:28
  six months, then it was nine months, and then
• 6:31
  it was a year. And now, well, it has just evolved
• 6:34
  into a year because it looks like everything
• 6:36
  is quiet and doing well. And I'm grateful for
• 6:40
  that. So hopefully that's an encouragement to
• 6:42
  someone else as well, that it does get better.
• 6:45
  But now that doesn't go without having to do
• 6:49
  the work. I can't lift. a lot of things because
• 6:53
  I don't want to spike the blood pressure and
• 6:55
  get the blood to pumping and pushing that pressure,
• 6:58
  that pressure up against my arteries to blow
• 7:00
  out my, I know that sounds rather graphic, but
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  to blow out or make, create another dissection.
• 7:08
  And so I have to be careful with what I lift.
• 7:12
  and pushing and pulling, I can't do any of that.
• 7:15
  So you have to maintain your recovery on your
• 7:19
  end as well. So just be mindful of that. Again,
• 7:23
  you don't want to spike the blood pressure and
• 7:26
  cause the blood to pump rapidly and pounce up
• 7:31
  against your arteries. And so these are also
• 7:35
  some things that you can do to reduce the likelihood
• 7:38
  of future problems. The medical experts consistently
• 7:44
  recommend keeping blood pressure well controlled,
• 7:47
  taking prescribed medications as directed, avoiding
• 7:50
  tobacco products, following a heart -healthy
• 7:53
  lifestyle, and keeping all follow -up imaging
• 7:56
  appointments and reporting new or unusual symptoms
• 7:59
  to your health care provider. Most importantly,
• 8:03
  remember this, a second repair is not inevitable,
• 8:06
  in which I've just prayed that I never have to
• 8:09
  go through, but lifelong monitoring is essential
• 8:12
  and I can definitely handle that. Even after
• 8:15
  a successful repair, your healthcare team wants
• 8:17
  to keep an eye on your entire aorta, not just
• 8:21
  the section that was repaired. Regular imaging
• 8:24
  allows them to identify changes early and take
• 8:28
  action if necessary. As an aortic aneurysm survivor,
• 8:33
  one of the most important things we can do is
• 8:35
  remain engaged in our long -term care and continue
• 8:38
  showing up for those follow -up appointments.
• 8:42
  So that takes us to a fun fact. Did you know
• 8:49
  that medical guidelines recommend lifelong imaging
• 8:51
  surveillance after many types of aortic aneurysm
• 8:56
  repairs? That's because changes can sometimes
• 8:59
  occur over years after a successful procedure,
• 9:03
  and early detection allows healthcare providers
• 9:06
  to intervene before serious complications develop.
• 9:10
  Now, I do also want to add that monitoring is
• 9:14
  very important to keep those appointments because
• 9:18
  sometimes the aneurysm can change in size. visit.
• 9:26
  I was told that my aorta was um it had slightly
• 9:31
  increased and you know that's not abnormal that
• 9:35
  happens you know but uh the good thing with that
• 9:39
  is that uh it's not it wasn't a huge increase
• 9:44
  and the my um my cardiovascular team and my cardiac
• 9:49
  uh doctor didn't doesn't um uh says it doesn't
• 9:54
  warrant any any concern at this point. It didn't
• 9:59
  increase very significantly. And so, but they
• 10:04
  do measure the size of it and everything. And
• 10:06
  so, and I think it was so minimal at this point
• 10:09
  until they said that there's nothing that they
• 10:11
  need to do, but just to continue to monitor it.
• 10:15
  So I just wanted to share that part. Now that
• 10:20
  takes us to our weekly food focus. So we'll take
• 10:25
  a look at this week's heart healthy food focus,
• 10:28
  which is nut butter and in the easy simple ways
• 10:31
  to enjoy it. Nut butters are made from almonds,
• 10:36
  peanuts, walnuts, pecans, or mixed nuts that
• 10:42
  provide unsaturated fats, plant protein, fiber,
• 10:46
  vitamins, and minerals. When choosing nut butter,
• 10:49
  look for products with minimal added sugar, salt,
• 10:53
  or hydrogenated oils. Usually, I look for the
• 10:58
  natural nut butter that only has the nut in it
• 11:03
  and no sugar. The only ingredient should be the
• 11:11
  nut itself. But there are some you have to watch
• 11:17
  the labels on. They're not really natural. They
• 11:21
  have all kinds of additives and things in them.
• 11:24
  I won't call any name brands because I don't
• 11:28
  want to get myself in trouble. But you have some
• 11:31
  that have the... uh preservatives and all that
• 11:35
  kind of thing in it and salt and sugar and all
• 11:39
  that you want to avoid those and just get it
• 11:41
  as natural as you can and so uh that takes us
• 11:46
  to ways to enjoy nut butter you can spread it
• 11:49
  on apple slices which is what i do for breakfast
• 11:53
  especially sometimes some mornings when i just
• 11:55
  don't feel like cooking anything or i'm really
• 11:58
  not that hungry i'll just slice up an apple with
• 12:01
  my apple slicer and get me some nut butter and
• 12:04
  put it on a little plate. And my apple slicer,
• 12:09
  it slices into eight uh eight it divides my apple
• 12:13
  eight times into eight slices and i just enjoy
• 12:16
  slowly enjoy those slices by dipping them those
• 12:20
  apple slices by dipping them into the nut butter
• 12:23
  and just eating it just like that right off the
• 12:25
  plate and it's it's very filling and then i either
• 12:29
  have my coffee or tea you know and sometimes
• 12:32
  just plain milk uh but i do two percent milk
• 12:35
  i always have i don't like the full fat milk
• 12:39
  because you know I have to be weight conscious
• 12:42
  as well. And so you can also stir a nut butter
• 12:46
  into oatmeal. You can blend it in the smoothies
• 12:49
  which is something that I do. And then you can
• 12:53
  use it as a dip for celery or add a spoonful
• 12:57
  to a whole grain toast. Now I just want to say
• 13:00
  that this is only for educational purposes so
• 13:03
  check with your doctor. or nutritionist prior
• 13:06
  to adding to your diet. Now that brings us to
• 13:13
  the reflection questions. A reflection question
• 13:17
  to ponder, just something to think about. What
• 13:20
  steps are you currently taking to stay engaged
• 13:23
  in your long -term follow -up care? And is there
• 13:26
  anything you could do to make those appointments
• 13:28
  and imaging studies a higher priority? That's
• 13:32
  just, again, something to think about. And then
• 13:36
  the key takeaways from this segment was that
• 13:40
  many aneurysm repairs remain stable for years
• 13:43
  or decades. A repaired aneurysm does not eliminate
• 13:47
  the need for lifelong monitoring. Additional
• 13:52
  procedures may be needed if new aortic aneurysms
• 13:55
  develop or if changes occur elsewhere in the
• 13:59
  aorta. Endovascular repairs require ongoing surveillance
• 14:03
  for complications such as endoleaks. Blood pressure
• 14:07
  management remains one of the most important
• 14:10
  parts of long -term aortic health. Follow -up
• 14:14
  imaging often detects problems before symptoms
• 14:17
  occur. Now, I also just want to mention that
• 14:21
  if you'd like additional support with today's
• 14:23
  topic, I've created a few resources, journals,
• 14:27
  and trackers that may help. You can find more
• 14:30
  information about these items in my show notes.
• 14:35
  As always though, use the tools and resources
• 14:38
  that best support your recovery journey. Now,
• 14:41
  as we come to a close, I just want to say that
• 14:44
  I mentioned that coming next week, we'll answer
• 14:47
  another community question, which is, what are
• 14:51
  safe activities after open heart surgery at different
• 14:54
  stages of recovery? What is the general consensus
• 14:58
  for medical professionals? And I hope that you'll
• 15:01
  join me. So I want to thank you for joining me
• 15:06
  for this segment of From Recovery to Wellness.
• 15:09
  I'm blessed to be a part of your wellness journey,
• 15:12
  and I hope today's episode has provided information,
• 15:16
  encouragement, and practical steps you can use
• 15:20
  to support your heart health. So until next time,
• 15:25
  take care of your heart, take care of yourself,
• 15:27
  and remember, be well.