Welcome to Kris' Caring Bridge! I (Jenny) will be posting journal entries throughout this adventure, so check back periodically and feel free to share this site with others.
In November 2019, Kris was diagnosed with "mitral valve prolapse, resulting in severe mitral valve regurgitation." This is a fancy way of saying that Kris has a heart valve in between his left atrium and left ventricle that is not doing its job as a 1-way valve. Instead, Kris' valve is broken and allows blood to flow in both directions with each heartbeat. Any diagnosis with "regurgitation" is not ideal, and Kris was told that he needs open heart surgery to repair the valve. This is a condition that he has had his whole life, but it was only recently discovered.
After meeting with 3 different heart surgeons at 3 different hospitals, Kris has decided to have the surgery done at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. The surgery is scheduled for Thursday, February 13. Here is a link to a short video that explains the surgery:
https://youtu.be/LhhWu4JCrBwKris and I plan to use this site to communicate updates and prayer requests. We appreciate you joining us on this journey as Kris goes in to have his broken heart repaired, just in time for Valentine's Day! Feel free to look around and leave us a message!
