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Question:
What effect will my teeth (cavities) have on my heart valve surgery?
Good Evening,
I am a 71 year white male. I am set up for Aortic valve replacement in the next three weeks or so and I have 5 or 6 teeth that have good size cavities and cannot afford to have them repaired because all the dentist I have visited want to cap and crown them. What effect will this have on the valve replacement going forward?
submitted by Gordon from Houston, Texas on 4/30/2015
Answer:
by Texas Heart Institute cardiologist, George Younis, MD
This issue needs to be discussed with your cardiologist immediately and before the valve surgery. For simple cavities there is probably not much impact, but when it comes to abscesses or other more significant infections, the implications are very serious. In general, I would not suggest going into valve surgery with bad teeth.
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Updated May 2015
