title: Surgical considerations in the correction of valve dysfunction following heart transplantation.
abstract: Valve dysfunction is not an uncommon occurrence following heart transplantation but when present can be managed medically with diuretics and vasodilator therapy. If medical therapy fails, these patients are considered for retransplantation. Due to the scarcity of donor hearts, efforts aimed at limiting the pool of cardiac retransplantation candidates are being focused lately on preservation of cardiac allograft function by conventional operations in lieu of a retransplant. A review of the literature for patients who underwent valve operations following their heart transplants yielded 26 cases. Four of these had isolated mitral valve procedures, 18 had tricuspid procedures, two had combined mitral and tricuspid operations and two had aortic valve replacements. In this communication, we present a case of severe aortic insufficiency developing 7 yr after heart transplantation and leading to progressive clinical deterioration and NYHA class IV heart failure symptoms. The aortic valve was replaced with a 21-mm Carbo Medics supra-annular mechanical prosthesis (CarboMedics Inc.). She had a favorable postoperative course and remains well 7 months after her operation. Surgical correction of valvular lesions is warranted if the function of the previously transplanted heart is reasonably preserved.
authors.affiliation: Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Department of Surgery, The University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
authors.forename: Jacques
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kpodonu
authors.forename: Malek G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Massad
authors.forename: Alexander S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Geha
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001022:Aortic Valve Insufficiency / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D016027:Heart Transplantation / Q000009:adverse effects*; D019918:Heart Valve Prosthesis Implantation; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011183:Postoperative Complications; D012086:Reoperation