title: Development of a carbon-coated, central-hinging, bileaflet valve.
abstract: Between April 1963 and January 1966, 86 patients at the University of Wisconsin Hospital underwent aortic or mitral valve replacement, or both, with a carbon-coated, central-hinging, bileaflet valve. A 25-year follow-up has been obtained on 43 of these patients discharged with an aortic prosthesis, 13 patients discharged with a mitral prosthesis, and 2 patients discharged with double prostheses. The mean implantation time was 7.2 years, 9.0 years, and 9.5 years, respectively. The longest aortic valve implantation time was 24.2 years in a patient who had her bileaflet valve prophylactically replaced, and the longest mitral implantation time is 24 years in a patient who is doing well with her original prosthesis. We are not aware of any patient among the approximately 700 receiving this valve around the world who has developed fatigue-failure of the silicone-impregnated Teflon fabric leaflet. This valve has demonstrated unexpected durability and has provided some design and biomaterial concepts that are used in a number of current prosthetic valves.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland 21205.
authors.forename: V L
authors.initials: VL
authors.lastname: Gott
authors.forename: R L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Daggett
authors.forename: W P
authors.initials: WP
authors.lastname: Young
mesh_terms: D001021:Aortic Valve; D001672:Biocompatible Materials / Q000266:history*; D002244:Carbon; D006350:Heart Valve Prosthesis / Q000266:history* / Q000401:mortality; D049673:History, 20th Century; D006801:Humans; D008943:Mitral Valve; D011076:Polycarboxylate Cement; D011138:Polytetrafluoroethylene; D011474:Prosthesis Design; D012826:Silicone Elastomers; D014922:Wisconsin
chemical_list: D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D011076:Polycarboxylate Cement; D012826:Silicone Elastomers; C005506:polycarbonate; D002244:Carbon; D011138:Polytetrafluoroethylene