Doppler echocardiographic evaluation of prosthetic valve function.

Owing to its versatile, non-invasive, radiation-free, and low cost nature, Doppler echocardiography is undoubtedly the method of choice to evaluate prosthetic valve function. This evaluation follows the same principles used for the evaluation of native valves, with some important specifics and caveats described in this article. A complete echocardiography includes two dimensional imaging of the prosthetic valve, evaluation of valve leaflet/ occluder morphology and mobility, measurement of the transprosthetic gradients and valve effective orifice area (EOA), estimation of the degree of regurgitation, evaluation of left ventricular size and systolic function, and calculation of systolic pulmonary arterial pressure.