by T. Sloane Guy, MD | Aug 4, 2019
I have been doing roughly 100 robotic mitral valve repairs or similar procedures per year for many years which only a small handful of surgeons in the United States perform at that volume. I also do a lot of standard open heart surgical procedures. My expectation is... by T. Sloane Guy, MD | Aug 4, 2019
This is a tough one because we don’t really have a perfect replacement valve at the current time. This is one of the reasons why with mitral valve disease, I believe so strongly in repair as the first option for the vast majority of patients. For those limited number... by T. Sloane Guy, MD | Aug 4, 2019
It depends on your condition. In the case of mitral valve regurgitation, avoiding salt and maintaining a normal blood pressure may be helpful. However, a leaky mitral valve is a physical, structural problem and medicines and lifestyle changes may have limited impact... by T. Sloane Guy, MD | Aug 4, 2019
It depends on the disease but not everyone with heart disease needs surgery. For instance, mitral valve repair surgery is generally recommended for moderate to severe or severe mitral regurgitation. Lesser degrees of mitral regurgitation may not require surgery at... by T. Sloane Guy, MD | Aug 4, 2019
It depends on the condition but usually we don’t recommend surgery unless we believe it has a good chance of improving your condition. In the case of mitral regurgitation, as an example, it often is progressive meaning that it gets worse over time. The symptoms of... 
