Tricuspid valve replacement with the St. Jude Medical valve

Surg Today. 1994;24(1):6-12. doi: 10.1007/BF01676877.

Abstract

A study was conducted on 20 patients who underwent tricuspid valve replacement (TVR) with the St. Jude Medical (SJM) valve. Isolated TVR was performed on 9 patients, and additional mitral, or mitral and aortic valve replacements were performed on 11 patients. Four patients (20%) died in the early postoperative period, but there were no deaths related to the SJM valve in the tricuspid position. The mean follow-up period of the 16 survivors was 74.4 months, and there have been no deaths during the follow-up period. The postoperative actuarial survival rate was 80%, 10 years after surgery. Three patients, representing 0.25%/patient-months, developed valve thrombosis, the valve thrombosis-free rate being 72.8%, 10 years after surgery, while entrapment of a leaflet by endothelial pannus was found in one patient, representing 0.08%/patient-months. Thus, the incidence of all prosthetic valve-related complications was 0.34%/patient-months, and the postoperative complication-free rate was 65.3%, 10 years after surgery. The medium-term follow-up study of TVR with the SJM valve revealed no prosthetic valve-related deaths and a relatively low incidence of prosthetic valve-related complications. However, as with other mechanical valves, valve thrombosis was a major risk posed by the SJM valve in the tricuspid position.

MeSH terms

  • Actuarial Analysis
  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Child
  • Child, Preschool
  • Echocardiography, Doppler
  • Endocarditis / etiology
  • Female
  • Heart Block / etiology
  • Heart Valve Prosthesis* / adverse effects
  • Heart Valve Prosthesis* / mortality
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Prosthesis Failure
  • Reoperation
  • Survival Rate
  • Thrombosis / etiology
  • Tricuspid Valve / surgery*