title: [Biopsy of the heart valves. 872 cases].
abstract: In this study, 872 heart valves surgically excised from 810 patients during a period of 5 years (1994 through 1998) were examined pathologically. There was a predominance of aortic (506 patients) versus mitral valves (246 pts.). While aortic valves came more often from men (364) than from women (142), in mitral valves the M:F ratio is 82/164. Isolated calcific aortic stenosis appeared as the most frequent valvular disease (418 pts.), with predominance of its sclerotic-senile type (238 pts.). Mitral stenosis (185 pts.) remains the classical post-rheumatic disease. The relative frequency of a subvalvular stenosing mitral lesion is stressed. The "pure" incompetence of both aortic (70 pts.) and mitral (56 pts.) valve was usually based on valvular myxoid degeneration. An aorto-mitral disease requiring replacement of both valves (51 pts.) presented typically as a post-rheumatic lesion, however, a combination of a post-rheumatic mitral with a degenerative-sclerotic aortic valve disease may be possible. In 30 patients, the valvular replacement was performed for infective endocarditis or a post-IE lesion, mostly of the aortic valve. With the almost non-existence of acute rheumatic fever and with the increasing average age of population in this country, we may expect a long-term decline in mitral valve disease and an increase in aortic valve disease, particularly in the sclerotic type of aortic stenosis.
authors.affiliation: Fingerlandův ústav patologie LF UK a FN, Hradec Králové.
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Steiner
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dominik
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001706:Biopsy; D005260:Female; D006349:Heart Valve Diseases / Q000473:pathology*; D006351:Heart Valves / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged