I spoke with my mother this week and she mentioned that she will need to have heart surgery fairly soon for back-flow into her aorta. She asked me if I knew of any good heart surgeons and I really don't. Has anyone gone through this that would be willing to share what they know. I'd really like to find a way to research some top quality surgeons for her. Thanks for any/all info.....

You'll need to determine where she wants to have the surgery and then go from there.
I mean, if she's in Boston that's one thing and if she's in Gallup that's another.

We have a little place here in Spokane that is called "The Heart Institute". They are doing procedures that are not being done in Seattle or Minneapolis, and are pioneering in a lot of areas. They are so good, that CHS (the owner of the other hospital in town) is trying their best to drive them out of business by advertising that their hospital has "chest pain specialists"!!
http://washington.providence.org/clinics/providence-spokane-heart-institute/
I know there are others around the country, but this should give you a start in research.

Thanks for the quick replies! She's in Sacramento and we're in Omaha but I know she'd be willing to travel if it meant her getting much better care. Probably not to the East coast but ya never know!

Please keep the responses coming....

assume she's going to require some level of after surgery care. if you're employed, it would be easier on your end . start with your family doctor, accurately explain the problem and see who he recommends. as a general rule of thumb, teaching hospitals usually offer superior care and staffing. we have hospitals that specialize in heart treatment, I be suprised if there was not a facility like that in your area. the good news is, if anything has to go wrong , the heart seems to be the easiest fixed .good luck.

Heard on TV that you want to go to a hospital where they do a large number of these procedures. That way the surgeons will have a lot of experience doing that same procedure your mother is going to have and will be less likely to make a mistake.

Hi Jeff,

If your mom is in Omaha I would recommend Dr. John Batter that works in the Methodist group. He's done quad by-passes on my dad, my uncle (Duckster's dad) and my wife's uncle. All came through with flying colors and are still ticking as we speak.

Mike

I have a friend having a heart valve replacement done today at the mayo clinic in Rochester,mn

every large city in America has competent heart mechanics.

And you are close enough to San Francisco so follow-up treatment and therapy along with traveling won't be too hard on her.
Maybe University of San Francisco Medical center would be a good place to start.

Thank you guys.....keep it up!

The best way to find a good surgeon is to ask other surgeons, particularly surgical residents. They operate with lots of surgeons and the word spreads who is good and who is not. Unfortunately surgeons are like the police and have their own "thin blue line" and don't talk about it outside the group.

My wife operates here in CT and one of the two surgeons she says is extremely gifted is a heart surgeon, Robert Gallagher, of course that only helps if your Mom is in CT.

Otherwise I would look for one of the high volume guys that works in a first class hospital. If he specializes in the procedure your mom is having all the better.

I had 4 by passes,replaced aortic valve and another 1 and sewed up a hole in my heart last March 28th.This was all done at the Plano Heart Hospital here in Dallas,Texas.My surgeon was a Dr. Smith at the hospital.I do not know if you can swing it but I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND THE HOSPITAL AND HIM.If you would like more info just pm me and I will get all of the names and phone numbers you might need.Your mother will be in my prayers and thoughts. Skeeter

sounds like she is looking at Heart Valve Replacement . Any experienced heart surgeon could do this procedure . Just make sure if you are doing this at a teaching hospital , to not sign the form that you agree to let students assist in the procedure or do the actual operation while the director or primary heart surgeons watches or supervises the operation. Let them practice on someone else. Remember this is actual open heart surgery not by-pass, because the heart has to be open up to get to the valves. This procedure is common surgery done every day in most Med Centers. When you decide on a Hospital and Physician ask for a list of patients the doctor has performed the surgery on in the past and get their real life opinion on the Doctor and their recovery time in the hospital. Good Luck she should recover fine unless she has other major problems like respiratory or other underlying heart problems .

Thank you Skeeter.

Nebraska,

US NEWS & WORLD REPORT does a comprehensive study of hospitals nationwide in all major specialties. See their website for more details on rankings and regional rankings in your area. Below is the top 4.

National Rank Cardiology

by Hospital

#1
Cleveland Clinic
Cleveland, OH
See Cardiology & Heart Surgery scorecard
Ranked in Cleveland metro area and Ohio
100.0 / 100

#2
Mayo Clinic
Rochester, MN
See Cardiology & Heart Surgery scorecard
Ranked in Minnesota
97.0 / 100

#3
New York-Presbyterian University Hospital of Columbia and Cornell
New York, NY
See Cardiology & Heart Surgery scorecard
Ranked in New York metro area and New York
85.0 / 100

#4
Duke University Hospital
Durham, NC
See Cardiology & Heart Surgery scorecard
Ranked in Raleigh-Durham metro area and North Carolina
76.6 / 100

http://health.usnews.com/best-hospitals/rankings/cardiology-and-heart-surgery

Thanks for the link! Keep it coming......

Cleveland Clinic - However if what she needs isn't rare, or unusual there are probably many viable alternatives closer to home. Get a second opinion at Cleveland Clinic and get them to consult. -tnscouter

"The best way to find a good surgeon is to ask other surgeons, particularly surgical residents. They operate with lots of surgeons and the word spreads who is good and who is not. Unfortunately surgeons are like the police and have their own "thin blue line" and don't talk about it outside the group."

This is excellent advice. It is what I did. Talked to a couple of surgeons who I trust but are not thoracic/heart surgeons. They both came up with a name that they said was the best around here. I didn't and don't like the guy (bedside manner) but I did not hire him to be my buddy just a skilled mechanic.

He did a cracker jack job on me and we parted company. Regular cardiologist oversees me now.