Meliana Wiharja: Twice Blessed

Meliana Wiharja says she and her family have two important reasons to be thankful. The first is for the life-saving treatment she received at Hoag Heart and Vascular Institute, and the second is for the opportunity it gave her to become a mother.

Meliana was newly married when she discovered that she had significant heart valve disease that required immediate surgery. However, the traditional approach - valve replacement surgery - might mean a lifetime of post-surgical medication therapy that would make her dreams of having a baby highly improbable.

That's when a family member suggested she seek a second opinion with Aidan Raney, M.D., surgical director of Hoag Heart Valve Center.

Dr. Raney is esteemed both nationally and internationally for his expertise in heart valve surgery and is one of the few cardiac surgeons in Orange County to perform the highly complex and innovative procedure of mitral valve repair.

Unlike valve replacement, valve repair utilizes a variety of surgical techniques to fix the patient's own valve, rather than replace it. For patients, this means significantly less risk for serious complications and no need for life-long treatment with blood thinners as is required with mechanical mitral valve replacement.

"Meliana was an excellent candidate for mitral valve repair," comments Dr. Raney. "We were so pleased to be able to impact her life and her family's in such an important way."

Just a couple of years after her heart valve surgery, Meliana became a patient at Hoag once again. This time to give birth to a beautiful little girl named Angela.

"I not only owe my life to Drs. Raney and Shah," says Meliana with a smile. "But they are also the reason my little girl is here today. For that, I am eternally grateful!"