Prosthetic valve thrombosis: when and how should we lyse?

Ö o ( c p e fi ( ( t d v ( l With the advent of the Starr-Edwards mechanical mitral and aortic valves in the 1960s, the surgical era of the treatment of cardiac valvular disease began in earnest. Although considered definitive, valve replacement surgery effectively represents an exchange of the pathophysiology of severe valvular dysfunction for the diseases and complications associated with prosthetic valves. These include severe paravalvular leak, endocarditis, severe hemolysis, valvular dehiscence, valve failure, and prosthetic valve thrombosis (PVT).