Background: Implantation of bioprosthetic valves is more common as the population ages and there is a shift towards implanting bioprosthetic aortic valves in an increasingly younger surgical population. Bioprosthetic heart valve insertion, however, carries the long-term risk of valve failure through structural valve degeneration. Re-operative surgical aortic valve replacement has historically been the only definitive management option for patients with prosthetic valve dysfunction, however, data on the short- and long-term outcomes following re-operative surgery in Australia and New Zealand is limited.
Method: Data on all patients who underwent redo aortic valve surgery, over a 20-year period (up to 2021) was obtained from the Australian and New Zealand Society of Cardiothoracic Surgery Registry.
Results: A total of 1,199 patients (770 males; 64.2% and 429 females; 35.8%) were included in the overall analysis. The 30-day mortality was 6.4% with operative urgency status the most important risk factor for peri-operative mortality. The long-term survival rate of 1,145 patients was 90.5% (95% confidence interval [CI] 88.8%-92.3%), 77% (95% CI 73.9%-80.2%) and 57.2% (95% CI 55.2%-62.8%) at 1-, 5- and 10-years post-procedure, respectively, with a median survival of 12.7 years. Pre-existing chronic kidney disease was strongly associated with poorer long-term survival. For patients under 70 years of age the 1-, 5- and 10-year survival rates were 92.9% (95% CI 90.9%-95.1%), 83.6% (95% CI 80.1%-87.3%) and 73.1% (95% CI 67.4%-79.3%), respectively.
Conclusions: The results from this registry study indicate that in Australia and New Zealand, a repeat surgical aortic valve replacement can result in a relatively low mortality rate, serving as a reference point for medical procedures in these regions.
Keywords: Aortic valve replacement; Aortic valve surgery; Long-term outcomes; Re-operation; Redo AVR.
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