title: Favorable Survival after Aortic Valve Replacement Compared to the General Population.
abstract: A comparison was made between the long-term survival of patients undergoing aortic valve replacement (AVR) for aortic stenosis and of the general Icelandic population, using centralized registries.
  
  
  
  A total of 366 AVR patients (231 males, 135 females; mean age 70.1 years) operated on for aortic stenosis in Iceland between 2002 and 2011 was included in the study. Concomitant coronary artery bypass grafting was performed in 54% of cases. Short-term complications and 30-day mortality were analyzed. The patients' overall survival was compared with the survival of Icelanders of the same age and gender. The median follow up was 4.7 years.
  
  
  
  A bioprosthesis was used in 81% of the patients; the median prosthesis size was 25 mm. Atrial fibrillation (68%) and acute kidney injury (23%) were the most common complications, and the 30-day operative mortality was 6%. Overall survival at one year and five years was 92% and 82%, respectively. There was no difference in survival between the surgical cohorts and expected survival of Icelanders of the same age and gender (p = 0.08), except for the first 30 postoperative days.
  
  
  
  Despite the significant rate of short-term complications, the long-term survival of patients undergoing AVR for aortic stenosis was good compared to the general population of the same age and gender. These results confirmed the value of AVR as an excellent treatment option for aortic stenosis, as it offers a normalization of the patients' life expectancy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Landspitali University Hospital, Reykjavik.|Faculty of Medicine, University of Iceland.
authors.forename: Sindri A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Viktorsson
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Medicine, University of Iceland.
authors.forename: Dadi
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Helgason
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Medicine, University of Iceland.
authors.forename: Andri W
authors.initials: AW
authors.lastname: Orrason
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Medicine, University of Iceland.|The Icelandic Heart Association.
authors.forename: Thor
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Aspelund
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, Landspitali University Hospital, Reykjavik, Iceland.
authors.forename: Martin Ingi
authors.initials: MI
authors.lastname: Sigurdsson
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Landspitali University Hospital, Reykjavik.|Faculty of Medicine, University of Iceland.
authors.forename: Arnar
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Geirsson
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Landspitali University Hospital, Reykjavik.|Faculty of Medicine, University of Iceland.
authors.forename: Tomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Gudbjartsson
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging; D001022:Aortic Valve Insufficiency / Q000401:mortality* / Q000601:surgery*; D001024:Aortic Valve Stenosis / Q000401:mortality* / Q000601:surgery*; D001705:Bioprosthesis; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D019918:Heart Valve Prosthesis Implantation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007055:Iceland / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D011474:Prosthesis Design; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D015996:Survival Rate; D016896:Treatment Outcome