title: Long-term experience with the St. Jude Medical valve prosthesis.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  All patients undergoing St. Jude Medical valve replacement at the Medical University of South Carolina since January 1979 have been followed prospectively at 12-month intervals.
  
  
  METHODS
  This report describes long-term experience in 710 adult patients undergoing isolated aortic (AVR) (418) or mitral valve replacements (MVR) (292) with this prosthesis from January 1979 to December 1996.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Ages ranged from 19 to 84 years (54.8 +/- 15.1 AVR, 51.8 +/- 12.9 MVR; mean +/- SD). Male gender predominated in the AVR group (70%) and female gender in the MVR group (62%). One hundred and fifty-seven patients (22%) had associated coronary artery bypass grafting (AVR 27%, MVR 15%). Thirty-day operative mortality was 5.3% (22/418) in the AVR group and 5.1% (15/292) in the MVR group. Follow-up is 96.9% complete and ranges from 1 month to 16.9 years (AVR, 2,376 patient-years, mean 5.7 +/- 4.5 years; MVR, 1,868 patient-years, mean 6.4 +/- 4.8 years). In the AVR group, 120 late deaths have occurred and actuarial survival was 78.0 +/- 2.3%, 58.0 +/- 3.2%, and 36.8 +/- 4.8%; at 5, 10, and 15 years, respectively. Forty-six patients have sustained 55 thromboembolic (TE) events (2.3%/patient-year). Fifty-one patients had anticoagulant-related bleeding complications (2.7%/patient-year). The mean improvement in New York Heart Association (NYHA) functional class from preoperative to postoperative was 3.0 +/- 0.8 to 1.7 +/- 0.1 (p < 0.05). In the MVR group, there have been 84 late deaths, and the actuarial survival was 79.3 +/- 2.5%, 60.1 +/- 3.5%, and 49.3 +/- 4.1% at 5, 10, and 15 years, respectively. Fifty-two patients have had 64 TE events (3.5%/patient-year). Twenty-three patients had anticoagulant-related bleeding complications (1.6%/patient-year). The mean improvement in NYHA functional class was from 3.3 +/- 0.6 to 1.8 +/- 0.1. There were no mechanical failures in either group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  With a follow-up now extending to 17 years, the St. Jude Medical valve continues to be a reliable mechanical prosthesis with low and stable rates of valve-related complications.
authors.affiliation: Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston 29425, USA. zellnejl@musc.edu
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Zellner
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Kratz
authors.forename: A J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Crumbley
authors.forename: M R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Stroud
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Bradley
authors.forename: R M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Sade
authors.forename: F A
authors.initials: FA
authors.lastname: Crawford
mesh_terms: D000206:Actuarial Analysis; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001021:Aortic Valve / Q000601:surgery*; D002423:Cause of Death; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006349:Heart Valve Diseases / Q000401:mortality / Q000601:surgery*; D006350:Heart Valve Prosthesis; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008943:Mitral Valve / Q000601:surgery*; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000401:mortality; D011474:Prosthesis Design; D011475:Prosthesis Failure