Valve Replacement Surgery
Why
is the doctor performing this surgery?
To
replace a poorly functioning heart valve. The valve can be narrowed and
obstruct blood flow (called stenosis), or it
can be floppy/leaky (called insufficiency). Properly functioning heart
valves are essential to direct the flow of blood thru the heart, and to
maintain a normal workload for the heart. The most common heart valves
surgically replaced are the mitral valve and the aortic valve.
What
is the surgery?
This
surgery is an open-heart procedure to remove the poorly functioning
(either stenotic or insufficient) valve, and
replace it with either a mechanical (synthetic/man-made) or a tissue
(biologic/from another organism) valve. The pumping and oxygenation
function of the heart is taken over by a heart-lung machine during the
surgery, and medications are given that briefly paralyze the heart (cardioplegia). This way, the heart is completely at
rest while the surgeon performs the replacement surgery.
Please
note: Patients receiving a mechanical valve replacement will be
required to take a blood-thinning medication called Coumadin (an
anticoagulant) daily for life to prevent blood clots from forming on
the prosthetic valve.
Where
is the surgery performed?
In the
Operating Room (OR), under general anesthesia.
How
long does this surgery take?
The
surgery length of time will vary based on which valve is replaced, the
type of replacement valve, the patient's underlying medical condition,
etc, but a good estimate for Valve Replacement Surgery is 3-6 hours.
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