81-year-old patient finds her 'spunk' after surgery

About 13 years ago, Mary Snooks experienced her first recognizable heart episode during a morning walk. She felt pressure in her neck and shoulder and recalls telling her husband, “You need to take me to the emergency department. Something’s going on.”

She came to Loma Linda University Medical Center (LLUMC)-Murrieta for a full cardiology evaluation and was diagnosed with coronary artery disease, receiving stents in 2013. The diagnosis wasn’t surprising. Despite maintaining an active lifestyle of walking, water aerobics, and cardio workouts, Snooks comes from a family with extensive heart disease — seven of her eight siblings have faced cardiac issues.

Heart Failure Diagnosis

In the years following her stent procedure, Snooks continued follow‑up care for arrhythmias and atrial fibrillation. But, about a year ago, her symptoms worsened. She again experienced that familiar neck and shoulder pressure and went straight to the hospital. There, she learned that a leaky tricuspid valve was causing right‑sided heart failure.

According to Parkeh Niraj, MD, medical director of the Heart Vascular Center and the Structural Heart Program at LLUMC–Murrieta, right‑sided heart failure occurs when the tricuspid valve allows blood to flow backward, leading to symptoms such as abdominal bloating and leg swelling. 

Having treated Snooks for years, Niraj recommended a promising new option.

EVOQUE Tricuspid Valve Replacement

The EVOQUE Tricuspid Valve Replacement treatment is a new treatment with LLUMC–Murrieta being one of only 20 hospitals nationwide to commercially launch the device. 

The device is a self‑expanding replacement valve delivered through a catheter. During the procedure, a large tube is inserted through the femoral vein, allowing the new valve to be positioned inside the existing tricuspid valve. The old leaflets are grasped, and the anchored replacement valve is deployed to stop the regurgitation.

Because tricuspid valve disease can worsen arrhythmias and heart failure symptoms, treating Snooks’s valve offered the best chance of improving both. 

“By treating her valve with this type of valve replacement, we would treat her heart failure and better control her arrhythmia,” Niraj said.

By undergoing this procedure, Snooks would be one of the first LLUMC–Murrieta patients to receive the EVOQUE Tricuspid Valve Replacement. Snooks felt confident about her care team and was excited to be among the first patients helping launch the program.

Before her procedure, she received a booklet explaining the procedure in simple terms, “The book explained it really well,” she said. “It was amazing to learn how something so small can go into your heart and keep it pumping well.”

Snooks’s procedure was within the first few days of the program’s launch. Aside from experiencing shakes and chills afterwards, she says, “I felt very good right away.”

Life after surgery

Since the surgery, Snooks says she feels like a new person. “I keep myself going — I’m never home,” she said. She stays busy spending time with her family and caring for her husband of 63 years, who has dementia.

Niraj notices the change, too. “I see a smile on her face. I see her going out with a spunk, enjoying time with her family and friends. This is what it is all about — being at the forefront of new technologies we can offer to patients in Murrieta and the surrounding communities, like Mary.”

Advice for others

Snooks urges others not to ignore symptoms. Her son passed away at age 55 from a massive heart attack after delaying an angiogram he knew he needed.

“He didn’t take the time, and now he’s not here,” she said. “If you ignore it…you’re not going to be here.”

Snooks hopes her story encourages others to listen to their bodies and seek experienced care early. If you’re experiencing symptoms like chest discomfort, shortness of breath, or fatigue — or if fear is delaying your care — early evaluation can make all the difference.

Learn more about Heart & Vascular services at LLUMC–Murrieta here.