EARLY EXPERIENCE AND MID - TERM RESULTS WITH HOMOGRAFT AORTIC ROOT REPLACEMENT

Abstract

Background- An obvious substitute for the diseased aortic valve is a healthy duplicate. Despite increasing experience in a half century, the search for an ideal valve replacement for a diseased aortic valve continues.Homograft (allograft) aortic valve is a good choice in endocarditis and complex aortic valve and ascending aorta pathology.<br />Methods- Between March 1996 and Oct. 2000, ten patients (3 females, 7 males), aged 16 - 58 years (mean 32.6) underwent aortic root replacement using cryopreserved aortic homograft, due to native or prosthetic aortic valve endocarditis and aneurysm of ascending aorta.<br />Results- The length of hospital stay was 10 to 85 days (mean 32.6) with one in-hospital death (%10). The patients were followed up for 1 to 90 months (mean 35.2) with no incidence of thromboemboli, endocarditis, or reoperation and are now in good functional class.<br />Conclusion- Aortic root replacement is the procedure of choice in endocarditis. It could be done even in high-risk and redo patients with acceptable mortality.