ABSTRACT
The first successful artificial valve replacements were performed in the early 1960s (1). Prosthetic valves have a sewing ring that enables suture attachment to surrounding human tissue. They are classified according to the material (biological tissue or mechanical) and the design of the occluder. Biological tissue valves are further divided on the basis of the presence (stented) or absence (stentless) of a structural support and the tissue of origin, with homografts versus heterografts (porcine or bovine). Mechanical valves are distinguished by three main occluder designs: ball in cage, tilting disk, and bileaflet, the latter being the most commonly implanted in the mitral position.
