Pulmonary Valve Stenosis
Contact Information
(608) 263-6311
(608) 263-6420
Related Resources
Symptoms may include:
- Fatigue
- Shortness of breath
- Heavy or rapid breathing
- Or a blue color in the skin (cyanosis)
- Some patients may also have an abnormal heartbeat (arrhythmia)
Treatment
In some cases, pulmonary stenosis can be treated by inserting a balloon through the narrow area and inflating it, thereby opening up the stenosis. This type of procedure is performed by interventional cardiologists.
In other cases, surgical repair of the valve is necessary. The operation is performed under general anesthesia, which means you will be asleep during surgery.
First, the surgeon makes a vertical incision in the front of the chest, opens the breastbone, and exposes the heart. Blood from the heart is redirected to a bypass machine. The bypass machine does the job of the heart and lungs during the operation.
Then, the surgeon reconstructs the pulmonary valve to allow blood to pass through more easily.
After the valve is repaired and the heart closed , the surgeon shuts down the heart-lung bypass machine, and the heart starts beating again. The surgeon then closes the breastbone and chest incision, and applies bandages to the incision site.
Recovery