When can I drink water normally after valve replacement surgery? This question is often asked by patients, but it is also one of the worst questions for doctors to answer, because there is no standard answer and it is influenced by too many factors. In general, the valve replacement surgery itself is definitely a blow to the heart in the early postoperative period and can affect the function of the heart. Therefore, we control fluid intake and water intake in the early postoperative period according to various in-hospital monitoring indicators, and even strictly control water intake when the patient feels very thirsty, in order to reduce the burden on the heart and facilitate early postoperative recovery. But after discharge from the hospital, without all kinds of monitoring equipment and indicators, even if you go to ask the doctor, the doctor is unlikely to give you a standard answer. Here is a general principle for you: If the heart function is good before surgery, and the heart function is normal at the time of discharge review, then after discharge, you can drink water without too strict control, and you don’t need to restrict water to the point that you can hardly swallow even eating, and your tongue and lips are dry and cracked, as long as you feel slightly thirsty. At the three-month review, if the heart function is normal, you can drink water normally, but do not drink a lot of water in a short period of time, just follow the principle of small amount and many times. However, if the heart function is significantly impaired before surgery or if heart failure has occurred, then the amount of water drunk after surgery needs to be strictly controlled, and the amount of water drunk should be increased slowly only after at least one month. After discharge from the hospital, it is important to maintain a somewhat thirsty state in the early stage and slowly increase the amount of water drunk gradually according to the situation, strictly grasping the principle of drinking a certain amount of water, in several times, a small amount at a time. At the same time, you should closely observe whether you have symptoms of breath-holding, increased coughing and coughing up thin white foamy sputum. If these phenomena occur, it is not just a matter of limiting water intake, but it is likely that you should intensify the use of diuretics and visit the hospital. There is another situation in which patients also often ask: “Doctor, I have good water control, I’m not stealing water at all, but I just have little urine, what should I do?” This condition is also related to many factors, such as the patient’s blood pressure, kidney function, heart function status, medications, etc. You can contact your supervising doctor, who may have a better understanding of your condition and can give appropriate solutions. It is more prudent to go to the hospital for further examination if possible. Regarding drinking water, some patients and their families still do not have enough understanding. Some patients who have heart failure after discharge tell the doctor that they really don’t drink much water after they go home, “their children are filial, so they drink three bowls of turtle soup a day to make up for it”, or “they don’t eat every day, only drink thin rice”, and some “their mouths Some of them are not idle and eat fruits, which makes doctors laugh and cry. In some cases, the patient’s family did not allow him to drink in the ward, but he drank raw tap water in the bathroom when he went to the toilet. The purpose of these examples is to show that water control after heart surgery is one of the main elements of treatment and rehabilitation, and should never be ignored. If your mouth is comfortable, your heart may have to suffer, and in the end, it is you who suffers. As a family member, you should also join us and be a qualified supervisor. In general, you need to follow the following two principles: A, total control: the total daily water intake (including soup, fruit, rice and other watery food) needs to be strictly controlled. B. Time control: not to drink large amounts of water for a short period of time (even if the total amount is well controlled, you should not concentrate on drinking too much water in a relatively short period of time). Finally, a word of caution, after heart surgery, even if the results of the review of good heart function, but the heart can no longer be the same as a normal person, in any case, do not drink a lot of water for a short time!