Aortic-Stenosis Books

I was very impressed how when I had to return this book because it was printed upside down how quickly I received it again. You also sent me a return label. This service makes me want to do business in the future.

Very informative, excellent print on glossy paper, a lot of detailed static and dynamic (DVD) pictures. I highly recommend it for anybody interested in practical application of Echo. Good to study from and for the review too.

As a practicing physician, I strongly recommend Adam Pick's books for all valve surgery patients, their families and their friends. The information provided is easy to understand, applicable to those considering the procedure, and a wealth of knowledge for those who have undergone the surgery. I have offered the well-written book to many of my patients and they have thanked me for providing them with it.

Adam's book really helped me through a very, very, very tough time. I recommend this book to all the patients and caregivers out there. My whole family read it.

A close friend of mine recently had to undergo heart valve surgery. None of my family or other friends had ever needed heart surgery, so, lacking any knowledge of the procedures or risks involved, I was quite fearful about what might happen to my friend.

Rather than just wait and see, I set out to learn as much as possible about heart valve surgery, not only to ease my own mind but so that I might provide the best possible support to my friend before and after his surgery.

I found plenty of useful information on the web, but nearly all of it focused on the technical aspects of heart valve surgery. You know, articles full of diagrams and medical terminology. While these helped me to understand what my friend would be going through physically, they didn't give me much information about how he might be feeling or, more importantly, what I could do to help support him throughout the process.

That's where this book proved to be invaluable. It's written in a very personal style, so you almost feel as though you and Adam are sitting at Starbucks talking about what he went through. Compared to the clinical kinds of information I had been getting up to that point, this book really helped me to understand the "human" side of heart valve surgery and how I might be able to help my friend through at least some of the fear and uncertainty he was feeling.

I'm very glad to report that my friend's surgery went well and that he's doing much better now. I'm also glad to recommend the Patient's Guide to anyone whose friend or family member is about to undergo heart valve surgery.

My husband had a valve repair and I bought this book to see how his situation might compare to what Adam talks about in his book. He gets some things messed up. One example is the TEE - it is not the same as a standard Echocardiogram - but he describes them the same way. Going through the esophagus, a cardiologist can determine more about a valve problem and this is the TEE.

I agree with the above reviewer who states "However, it is largely anecdotal, is somewhat self-centered or self-aggrandizing, and is not at all systematic. In many cases it tells the authoris' story without conveying a good sense of what is typical over the large population of valve recipients."

Having been through this process with my husband, I would not recommend this book to anyone because they would be scared to death of having the surgery. The thought of open-heart surgery is scary in and of itself. Everyone's recovery is different too. Some patients bounce back quickly while some not so fast.

This book does not warrant the $29.95 price tag. It is poorly written and is not very well organized.

Adam's website is, however, alot better and cheaper.

I had the Aortic valve replaced 10 years ago with a bovine valve. I had very little feedback from the surgeon. This book told me all I need to know. It would have been helpful prior to surgery, but after surgery it has cleared up all the mystery. I couldn't get any info about how long this valve should last, but now I know and it's great to realize I have many more years and even look forward to replacing the replacement when the time arrives. I'm currently as strong as I ever was and do anything I please, even back to flying light sports planes and driving (gas guzzling)fast cars. I'm an 80 year old WWII vet who thanks God for the medical system that makes me feel like a kid. God bless the USA.