Mitral valve repair with a malleable bovine pericardium ring.

OBJECTIVE To describe a surgical procedure utilizing a malleable bovine pericardium ring in mitral valve repair and clinical and Doppler echocardiographic results. METHODS Thirty-two (25 female and 7 male) patients, aged between 9 and 66 (M=36.4+/-17.2) years, were studied over a 16-month period, with 100% follow-up. In 23 (72%) of the patients, the mitral approach was the only one applied; 9 patients underwent associated operations. The technique applied consisted of measuring the perimeter of the anterior leaflet and implanting, according to this measurement, a flexible bovine pericardium prosthesis for reinforcement and conformation of the posterior mitral annulus, reducing it to the perimeter of the anterior leaflet with adjustment of the valve apparatus. RESULTS The patient survival ratio was 93.8%, with 2 (6.2%) fatal outcomes, one from unknown causes, the other due to left ventricular failure. Only one reoperation was performed. On Doppler echocardiography, 88% of the patients had functional recovery of the mitral valve (50% without and 38% with mild insufficiency and no hemodynamic repercussions). Of four (12%) of the remaining patients, 6% had moderate and 6% had accented insufficiency. Twenty-eight percent of class II patients and 72% of class III patients passed into classes I (65%), II (32%), and III (3%), according to NYHA classification criteria. CONCLUSION Being flexible, the bovine pericardium ring fit perfectly into the valve annulus, taking into account its geometry and contractility. Valve repair was shown to be reproducible, demonstrating significant advantages during patient evolution, which did not require anticoagulation measures.