title: Five-year follow-up after heart valve replacement with the CarboMedics bileaflet prosthesis.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The CarboMedics valve is a relatively new, low-profile, bileaflet, mechanical prosthesis. The results of a prospective follow-up study after valve replacement with this prosthesis in a university hospital are presented.
  
  
  METHODS
  We implanted 640 CarboMedics prostheses in 583 patients in the aortic (n = 359), mitral (n = 167), or aortic and mitral positions (double valve replacement; n = 57). Patient ages ranged from 11 to 81 years (mean age, 58 +/- 12.3 years).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Overall hospital mortality was 9.0%; however, when high-risk urgent cases were removed from the calculation, the operative mortality fell to 4.5%. Follow-up was 98% complete, comprising 2,027 patient-years for a mean follow-up of 44 months (range, 6 to 72 months). Actuarial freedom from complications (linearized rates in parentheses) was as follows: late mortality, 85% +/- 2.0% (2.3%/patient-year); thromboembolism, 92% +/- 1.1% (1.6%/patient-year); anticoagulation-related hemorrhage, 87% +/- 1.2% (2.8%/patient-year); prosthetic valve endocarditis, 98% +/- 0.5% (0.1%/patient-year); and overall valve-related morbidity and mortality, 76% +/- 2.1% (4.3%/ patient-year).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The CarboMedics valve shows a low rate of valve-related complications comparable with other new mechanical heart valve prostheses.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, University of Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Rödler
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Moritz
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Schreiner
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: End
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Dubsky
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Wolner
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002423:Cause of Death; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006350:Heart Valve Prosthesis / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000401:mortality; D017052:Hospital Mortality; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011474:Prosthesis Design; D011475:Prosthesis Failure; D015996:Survival Rate; D013923:Thromboembolism / Q000453:epidemiology