Prediction of aortic annulus diameter by two-dimensional echocardiography. Application in the preoperative selection and preparation of homograft aortic valves.
The preoperative selection and preparation of an appropriately sized homograft aortic valve would allow delay of surgery if a suitable valve were unavailable, thus pre-emptying inventory limitations, and a decrease of ischemic time in cases of isolated aortic valve replacement. An accurate preoperative measurement of the aortic annulus diameter is the prerequisite for such selection. The aortic annulus diameter was measured retrospectively in a blinded fashion from the two-dimensional echocardiograms of 62 patients who underwent aortic valve replacement with mechanical or bioprosthetic valves. Measurements were obtained with electronic calipers by two observers. Confidence in the accuracy of the measurement obtained was ranked on a scale from 1 to 5. The mean difference between echocardiographic measurements and prosthetic valve sizes was 0.39 +/- 0.46 mm (mean +/- 2SD) for observer 1 and -0.26 +/- 1.44 mm for observer 2. Ninety-eight percent of observer 1 measurements and 80% of observer 2 measurements were within 1.5 mm of the prosthetic valve size (p less than 0.01 for differences between observers). Confidence scores were higher for observer 1 and for both observers were related to accuracy. The aortic annulus diameter of eight patients scheduled for homograft aortic valve replacement was measured prospectively with the same technique. There was an excellent agreement between the two-dimensional echocardiographic measurements and the surgical measurements. In the last 5 consecutive patients, the echocardiographic measurement was used for the preoperative selection and preparation of the appropriate valve. In conclusion, measurement of the aortic annulus diameter by two-dimensional echocardiography is feasible and clinically useful for the preoperative selection and preparation of homograft aortic valves.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Moscucci
M
M
Department of Medicine, University of Chicago, IL.
Weinert
L
L
Karp
R B
RB
Neumann
A
A
D001021:Aortic Valve / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000637:transplantation; D001022:Aortic Valve Insufficiency / Q000601:surgery*; D001024:Aortic Valve Stenosis / Q000601:surgery*; D001705:Bioprosthesis; D004452:Echocardiography; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D006350:Heart Valve Prosthesis; D006801:Humans; D015588:Observer Variation; D014184:Transplantation, Homologous