Please follow these guidelines after your procedure. Your doctor will tell you when you can get back to your normal routine. Please talk to your doctor or nurse about any questions or concerns you have.
If your valve was put in place through your groin (transfemoral approach):
- Do not strain during bowel movements for 3 to 4 days after the procedure. This helps prevent bleeding from the catheter-insertion site.
- Do not lift anything that weighs more than 10 pounds or push or pull heavy objects for the first 5 to 7 days after the procedure.
- Do not take part in strenuous activities for 5 days after the procedure. This includes most sports, such as jogging, golfing, playing tennis and bowling.
- You may go up and down stairs if you need to, but go more slowly than usual.
- Gradually increase your activity level during the week after the procedure and ease back to your normal routine.
- Ask your doctor when it is safe for you to have sex again.
- Do not drive until you get the OK from your doctor.
- At your follow-up visit, ask your doctor about taking part in Stage II cardiac rehabilitation.
Take care of your incision site
- You will have a bandage over the incision site. You can take this dressing off the morning after the procedure. It is easiest to do this while showering - get the tape wet, then gently remove it.
- Wash your hands before you touch your incision site.
- Place an adhesive bandage over the incision site. It is normal for the area to be bruised for a couple of days. You may also notice that it looks pink and swollen, and there may be a small lump (about the size of a quarter).
- Wash (do not rub!) the site at least once each day with soap and water. Do not use perfumed soap or shower gel. Put soap on your hand or a washcloth and gently cleanse and rinse the area.
- Keep the area clean and dry, except when you shower.
- Do not use creams, lotions or ointment on the area.
- Do not take a bath, soak in any kind of water, or swim until the incision is completely healed.
- Wear clothing that fits loosely over the incision site.
If your valve was put in through your chest (transapical and transaortic approach):
- It will take about 8 weeks for your sternum to completely heal.
- Do not lift anything that weighs more than 10 pounds for 8 weeks after your procedure.
- Do not drive until you get the OK from your doctor.
- Walk every day, and continue to increase your effort and the length of time you walk.
- Do not do any strenuous activity before your doctor tells you it is okay to do so.
- Ask your doctor when it is safe for you to have sex again.
- At your follow-up visit, ask your doctor about taking part in Stage II cardiac rehabilitation.
Take care of your incision site
- Wash (do not rub!) the site at least once each day with soap and water. Do not use perfumed soap or shower gel. Put soap on your hand or a washcloth and gently cleanse and rinse the area.
- Wash your hands before you touch your incision.
- Keep the area clean and dry, except when you shower.
- Do not use creams, lotions or ointment on the area.
- Do not take a bath, soak in any kind of water, or swim until the incision is completely healed.
- Wear clothing that fits loosely over the incision site.
Information for All Patients
Important information about medications
- Before you leave the hospital, talk to your doctor about all the medications you need to take. Ask your doctor if you should keep taking the medications you took before your procedure.
- You may need to start taking new medications after your procedure. You can fill your prescriptions at Cleveland Clinic before you go home. Tell your nurse if you need help getting prescriptions filled.
- If you have diabetes, your doctor may adjust your diabetes medications for one to two days after your procedure. Ask your doctor if you need to make any changes to your diabetes medications and make sure you understand any changes.
Please tell us if you will have a problem filling or paying for your medications. We can help.
Make changes to live a heart-healthy lifestyle
To achieve the best results, you need to live a heart-healthy lifestyle. Your healthcare team can help you reach your goals, but it is up to you to take your medications as prescribed, make changes to your diet, quit smoking, get regular exercise, keep your follow-up appointments and be an active member of your treatment team.
See your doctor for follow-up care
It is important to keep all of your follow-up appointments to make sure you have the best recovery possible. Please make sure you know when you need to see your doctor after your procedure.
Please be sure to follow all other instructions your doctor gives you.
If you have any non-emergency questions or concerns after you get home, call: 1.888.490.6121
A registered nurse is available 24/7 to answer your call, although it is best to call with non-urgent questions between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. Monday - Friday, if possible.
Call 911 or go to your local emergency department, if you have any of the following symptoms:
- Chest pain or discomfort/angina that lasts for 5 minutes and does not go away after you rest or take medication. The pain may go away and come back again. It may also feel like a heaviness, tightness, pressure, aching, burning, numbness, fullness or squeezing. Sometimes the feeling is similar to indigestion or heartburn. If you have a prescription for nitroglycerin and have these symptoms, place a tablet/spray once under your tongue and wait 5 minutes. If the pain continues, call 911. If you have chronic stable angina and have symptoms after you take nitro and wait 5 minutes, take another tablet. You can take up to 3 tablets (1 every 5 minutes, for 15 minutes). If you still have angina after 15 minutes, call 911.
- Uncontrolled bleeding from the incision site. Bleeding is rare. But if it happens, take off the bandage. Use a clean compress (clean gauze, wash cloth) to put pressure directly on the site. Call 911 if the bleeding doesn’t stop after 20 minutes.
- Fast heart rate - more than 120 beats per minute, especially if you are short of breath.
- New irregular heartbeat.
- Trouble breathing or shortness of breath that does NOT stop when you rest.
- Sudden numbness or weakness in your arms or legs.
- Fainting.
- Pain or discomfort in your arm(s), left shoulder, back, neck, jaw or stomach.
- Sweating or a "cold sweat".
- Feeling full - This can feel like indigestion or heartburn. You may feel like you’re choking.
- Nausea or vomiting.
- Feeling light-headed, dizzy, very weak or anxious.
When to Call Your Doctor
Call your cardiologist if you have:
- Pus-like drainage, redness or unusual warmth at the incision/insertion site.
- Feelings of coldness, numbness, tingling, discoloration or a lot of swelling in the leg used for the procedure.
- A golf ball-sized lump at the incision site in your groin.
- Extreme pain or swelling at the incision site.
- Signs of infection: Redness, warmth, drainage at the incision site or a fever (temperature over 101 degrees Fahrenheit).
- Questions about your procedure, medications, follow-up schedule or treatment plan.
If you do not know your Cleveland Clinic cardiologist’s number, call the Cleveland Clinic Operator at 216.444.2200 or 800.223.2273 and ask to be transferred.
