ad a triple by-pass with an Aortic valve replacement back in 2010. For me it was radiation treatment for cancer in my neck back in 1972 that damaged the valve. I went for a pig valve just because I didn't want to have to take rat poison for the rest of my life, plus I'm a biker, and the odds of crashing alone out in the country and bleeding out while on blood thinners is non-zero. Yes the pig valves only last for 15 years or so, but I'll deal with re-operation when (and if) the time comes.
As far as recovery goes, for me it was a mortar fracker. I was on the table for a long time (Doc says he had to chip away the calcium from the inside of my Aorta to get to fresh meat to attach the valve to.) I felt like I had a hangover for a week (maybe I had a stroke, who knows). But I walked, and I walked. It snowed like hell that winter, and I must have wore a groove in the carpets around the house just walking. I went to cardiac rehab, and frankly I was one of the better recovering guys there, so that was good (maybe they had heart attacks, I didn't). As far as lingering stuff goes, I don't know, oddly enough I'm more claustrophobic since the operation, with perhaps a bit of brain fog. But then the fog could be due to having my Thyroid removed in 2011 due to cancer (also cause by the 1972 radiation).
Like all medical shite, its a big deal if you make it so. Just let the experts do what they do and follow instructions (you do need to sanity check them however). You'll be fine.
