title: Valve repair in congenital aortic valve abnormalities.
abstract: Many surgical techniques have been described either to repair and to replace the aortic valve. Among the paediatric population the potential for growth has to be preserved and valve reconstruction is therefore of great importance. In the last two years 25 consecutive patients, mean age 8.6 years, with aortic valve disease, underwent aortic valve repair for aortic regurgitation (AR) (10 patients), aortic valve stenosis (5 patients) or mixed lesion (10 patients). None of the patients died neither during hospitalization nor at follow-up (median 9.25 months). In the aortic stenosis (AS) group, one patient required reoperation (re-repair). None of the patients in the AR group developed more than mild AS and mild AR during follow-up. Nine out of 10 patients of the mixed lesion group had no or trivial AR at the follow-up. Left ventricular dimension decreased in all patients after repair. With a better understanding of the causes of AS or AR and the adoption of different techniques, often used in multiple association, we believe that aortic valve repair can be achieved in most patients with a normal left ventricular outflow tract.
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatric and Congenital Cardiac Surgery and Cardiology, Ospedali Riuniti, Via Conca 71, 60020 Ancona, Italy. mpozzi75@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pozzi
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Quarti
authors.forename: Massimo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Colaneri
authors.forename: Alessandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Oggianu
authors.forename: Alessandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Baldinelli
authors.forename: Pier Luigi
authors.initials: PL
authors.lastname: Colonna
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001021:Aortic Valve / Q000002:abnormalities / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*; D001022:Aortic Valve Insufficiency / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*; D001024:Aortic Valve Stenosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*; D006348:Cardiac Surgical Procedures / Q000009:adverse effects; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D017548:Echocardiography, Transesophageal; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D016277:Ventricular Function, Left; D055815:Young Adult