Why Cardiac Valve Repair?

It is now clear that repairing a patient’s own diseased mitral valve provides superior early and late results as compared to prosthetic mitral valve replacement (5, 6, 7, 8). In recent years, new techniques of repair, such as artificial chordal replacement and pericardial patch augmentation, have been perfected that increase applicability and stability of repair (20). At this point in time, 99% of all mitral pathologies can be repaired with excellent long-term results (13, 14, 22, 37). Simultaneously, the operative mortality for mitral repair has fallen close to zero, independent of severity of preoperative illness (44) (Click for a graph of Dr. Rankin's Operative Data.) Late outcomes for repair now are better because of no need for Coumadin anticoagulation, low thromboembolic rates, low endocarditis rates, and better durability than tissue valves. Having one’s own valve functioning normally is just more physiologic than an artificial valve. Original clinical research papers by Dr. Rankin and his colleagues and associated surgical videos are provided on this website to support these concepts, and interactive communication is encouraged to discuss these topics.

Detailed Information is on the Mitral Valve Repair Section