Finding Paragraph #1

A patient’s age, the severity and the steps you take to prevent this disease can implement answers as to why the treatment time is so prolonged for Aortic Stenosis. Sufferers can be one day old or seventy-five years old; age does not contradict this disease. Usually, a person of age twenty or younger is a congenital defect. Whereas people that of are middle age or older is either a result of rheumatic heart disease or degeneration of their aortic valve. (Encyclopedia Brittanica) Since some patients are younger than others, physicians may think that waiting for the disease to mature or worsen would be a better option than replacing a seemingly fine valve. This point ties into the severity of Aortic Stenosis. If you have mild to moderate Aortic Stenosis, there is no need for treatment immediately. However, if you are living with severe to critical Aortic Stenosis, immediate treatment is recommended since the area of the aortic valve, the velocity, and the pressure put on the heart is much greater and puts you more at risk at these stages of this disease. (Dr. Giovanni Ciuffo) Depending on your heart’s severity, your treatment time is varied. Aortic Stenosis is a very personalized and unexpected disease. There is also a picture I took from an institute's website directly relating to why treatment time is so personalized. The picture is a comparison between a regular heart and a heart invaded by Aortic Stenosis.The heart with Aortic Stenosis shows that the aortic valve is obstructed; however, another patient's heart can be more or less obstructed than the patient's heart being showed. (The Howard Gilman Institute for Heart Valve Disease) While at some times Aortic Stenosis is not much to stress about, other times it is “Life or Death”.

1."aortic stenosis." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica, 2011. Web. 20 Mar. 2011.

2. Ciuffo, Dr. Giovanni. "Aortic Stenosis - Progression From Mild, To Moderate, To Severe Disease."Heart Valve Surgery Book For Patients & Caregivers. Web. 27 Mar. 2011.

3. "Valve Diseases." Gilmanheartvalve.us. The Howard Gilman Institute for Heart Valve Disease. Web. 17 Mar. 2011.