ABSTRACT
Follow-up after valve surgery Although significant changes in valve design, prosthetic materials and surgical techniques have improved postoperative results after heart valve surgery, the haemodynamic performance of prosthetic valves remains inferior to that of native valves and life expectancy after valve replacement is reduced in comparison to age-matched controls,1-4
although patient-related factors have a major influence. Patients with prosthetic heart valves are prone to complications, which vary according to the type of prosthetic valve used. The design of biological valves can be divided into true biological valves, represented by the homograft and the autograft, and heterograft valves constructed of biological material rendered immunologically inactive by treatment with glutaraldehyde. Whatever the type of biological valve considered, the main complication of these substitutes is late primary valve failure, especially in patients aged <70 years old. Mechanical valves include caged-ball valves, tilting disc valves and bileaflet valves. All require life-long anticoagulation to prevent valve thrombosis and thromboembolism. Thus, patients who have undergone valve replacement are not cured and should be followed with the same care as patients with native valve disease.
