Mitral Valve repair or replacement

Posted By Juney Ahn on March 22, 1998 at 19:18:05:







Hello. My husband is 59 years old and he is having surgery
on 4-2-98 for mitral valve repair/replacement. He also had
a heart attack five weeks ago, and the angiogram found 80%
blockage in his right coronary artery, near the bottom of the
heart, where the artery is relatively small. Im afraid we have
many questions, and very much appreciate your help. Since his surgery
is so impending, if at all possible, we would indeed appreciate your
reponse before the operation.
-What is the new minimally invasive technique for valve
repair/replacement surgery. Who is a candidate for this
technique, what is involved, and when will it become widely
available?
-The operation will be performed at Kaiser Foundation
Hospitals Los Angeles Medical Center. Can you tell us
anything about this unit and/or its reputation for quality?
-How many surgeries does the Cleveland Clinic do for valve
repair/replacement per year? How many of these result in
valve repair, how many of these repairs are succcessful,
and how long on average do the repairs last?
-Is it true that porcine mitral valves wear out because of
calcification? Is it actual calcium that deposits? Is there anything that can
be done with diet, etc., to reduce calcification and make the
valve last longer? Are there other causes for them wearing out?
-My husband has always had a lot of plaque on his teeth.
Could this mean that the porcine mitral valve will become
calcified sooner?
Does the porcine valve and St. Jude valve compare in these
areas: Rejection rate, infection rate, defect rate, rate for
severe complications.
-It was explained that the porcine valve has two metal
structural pieces on it and that it does not look as neat and
aesthetic as the mechanical valve when sutured in. Do these
aesthetic differences have any effect on the function of the
valves?
-We were told that a venous graft was always used for the
right coronary artery? Is this true? We would rather not have
another incision in the leg if at all possible.
- If the artery is too small to be bypassed, do we have to worry
that it will get blocked again at that point again and cause another heart
attack? Or, when an artery is that small, do other surrounding
blood vessels take over supplying that part of the heart?
Thank you very much!