BACKGROUND This study was performed to determine independent predictors of long-term outcome after percutaneous balloon dilation of congenital pulmonary valve stenosis. Smaller follow-up series of patients after balloon pulmonary valvuloplasty have shown inconsistent results regarding the independent relation between prognostic factors and long-term outcome, as many patient selection and techni...

Prenatal intervention of severe fetal aortic valve stenosis by ultrasound-guided percutaneous balloon valvuloplasty has been performed to prevent the progression to hypoplastic left heart syndrome, and achieve biventricular circulation in neonates. Here we report a case of fetal aortic valvuloplasty prenatally diagnosed with aortic stenosis at 24 weeks of gestation and showed worsening features...

OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to evaluate the tenascin-C levels in severe rheumatic mitral stenosis before and after percutaneous mitral balloon valvuloplasty (PMBV). SUBJECTS AND METHODS Forty patients with severe mitral stenosis requiring PMBV and 20 age-matched healthy subjects were included in the study. The mitral valve areas, mitral gradients and systolic pulmonary artery pres...

OBJECTIVE To assess the outcome of percutaneous balloon dilatation of the mitral valve in critically ill young patients with intractable heart failure. DESIGN Retrospective analysis of all such patients presenting over a period of 4 years. PATIENTS Of 432 consecutive patients undergoing percutaneous balloon dilatation of the mitral valve, 12 (mean age 29 years) with intractable heart failur...

BACKGROUND To investigate the methods of percutaneous transcatheter interventions for combined congenital heart disease and to evaluate its efficacy in children. MATERIALS AND METHODS Thirty cases (ages 3 days-13.5 years, body weight 3-35 kg) that underwent two multiple transcatheter interventions for combined or solitary congenital heart disease were retrospectively analyzed and presented. ...

OBJECTIVES Our aim was to present the immediate and intermediate long-term results of the application of retrograde nontransseptal balloon mitral valvuloplasty (RNBMV) in four cooperating centers from Greece and India. BACKGROUND RNBMV is a purely transarterial method of balloon valvuloplasty, developed with the aim to avoid complications associated with transseptal catheterization. Only sing...