Objective: To evaluate the results of two operations, aortic valve-sparing and aortic root replacement, in patients with aortic root aneurysm and the Marfan syndrome. Methods: A retrospective review of 78 consecutive patients with aortic root aneurysm and the Marfan syndrome according to the Gent criteria indicated that 42 patients with normal aortic cusps had an aortic valve-sparing operation,...

BACKGROUND Pulmonary valve incompetence is usually well tolerated after tetralogy of Fallot repair but may result in late progressive right heart failure as manifested by increasing fatigue, dyspnea, and frequently arrhythmias. METHODS All patients who underwent pulmonary valve replacement in our center late after repair of tetralogy of Fallot were reviewed. RESULTS Eighty-five patients had...

BACKGROUND Extension of infection below the aortic valve is a serious complication, especially with mitral valve involvement. Mortality is substantial and reinfection can strongly influence outcome. PATIENTS Of 327 surgical patients with active infective aortic valve endocarditis admitted to the Deutsches Herzzentrum Berlin for surgical treatment between December 1996 and December 2003, 108 h...

Preservation of the subvalvular apparatus has the merits of postoperative outcomes during mitral valve replacement for mitral regurgitation. We performed mitral valve replacement with anterior and posterior leaflet chordal preservation in a 65-year-old woman. On the 2nd postoperative day, routine postoperative trans-thoracic echocardiography showed an unknown aortic subvalvular mobile mass. We ...

OBJECTIVE Since 1992, homografts have been implanted in our institution. After initial sub-coronary implantation of the homograft, our preferred technique for aortic-valve replacement with homografts became root replacement, which poses a surgical challenge whenever redo procedures are necessary. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the outcome after homograft redo surgery, based on pro...

PURPOSE The Starr-Edwards ball valve was first applied clinically in 1960. In our hospital, this valve has been used since 1963, and some patients have been followed up for 30 years or more. Based on our experience, therapeutic strategies included revalve replacement as a preventive procedure in the absence of valve-related complications. In this study, we investigated whether prophylactic reop...