Objective To investigate long-term echocardiography characteristics and their clinical significance of patients after mitral valve replacement （MVR）. Methods We retrospectively analyzed clinical data of 204 patients who underwent prosthetic MVR and finished echocardiography examination at least 5 years after surgery in West China Hospital of Sichuan University. There were 44 male patients and 160 female patients with their age of 23 to 73 （50.9±10.6）years. Postoperatively， all the patients were followed up for 5-15 （7.9±2.3）years and regularly received echocardiography examination at the outpatient department. Analysis variables included left atrium （LA） dimension， left ventricle （LV） dimension，right atrium （RA） dimension， right ventricle （RV） dimension， left ventricular ejection fraction （LVEF） and effective orificearea （EOA） of the mitral valve. Results Long-term echocardiography showed that LA and LV dimensions were signifi-cantly smaller than preoperative dimensions （P＜0.05）， while RA and RV dimensions were not statistically different from preoperative dimensions （P＞0.05）. Long-term LVEF was significantly higher than preoperative value （P＜0.05）. Long-term EOA was 1.1-4.8 （2.3±0.5）cm2， including EOA of 1.1-1.4 cm2 in 7 patients （3.4%，7/204），and 1.6-1.9 cm2in 42 patients （20.6%，42/204）. During long-term follow-up， 7 patients underwent their second heart surgery， including2 patients with prosthetic valve dysfunction， 1 patient with prosthetic perivalvular leak and severe hemolytic anemia，3 patients with severe tricuspid regurgitation which were not improved after medication treatment， and 1 patient with moderateaortic valve stenosis and regurgitation. Two patients had left atrial thrombosis during follow-up， including 1 patient who died of endocarditis 7 years after surgery， and another patient who was still receiving conservative therapy and further follow-up. Conclusion Concomitant tricuspid or aortic valve disease should be actively treated during MVR， and postoperative patients need better follow-up. Many patients after MVR need long-term cardiovascular medication treatment during follow-up in order to improve their heart function and long-term survival rate.
Objective To evaluate the preliminary effect of tricuspid annuloplasty for patients with dilated tricuspidannulus and left-sided heart valve surgery by employing combined bicuspidization and modified Kay annuloplasty. Methods?Combined bicuspidization and modified Kay annuloplasty were performed in 158 patients with dilated tricuspidannulus （tricuspid annulus diameter/body surface area≥21 mm/m2） and left-sided heart valve surgery in West China Hospitalbetween January 2010 and May 2011. There were 27 male and 131 female patients whose age ranged from 17 to 74 （45.9±10.4） years. A total of 92 patients had atrial fibrillation and 66 patients were in sinus rhythm. The severity of tricuspid regurgitation（TR）was graded 0 through 5 as determined by echocardiography.?Results?All the patients recovered from surgery and were discharged from hospital. The average cardiopulmonary bypass time was 100.8±30.5 （range, 54 to 273） min, and the average aortic cross clamping time was 64.5±22.0（range, 25 to 162）min. The average lowest esophageal temperature during aortic cross clamping was 28.5±1.1（range, 26.3 to 34.1）?℃. The average postoperative follow-up was 11.0±5.0 （range, 3 to 19） months. The postoperative TR severity was significantly lower than preoperative TR severity （2.2±1.3 versus 0.4±0.8， P＜0.05）. The postoperative right atrium diameter, right ventricle diameter and left atrium diameter were significantly lower than preoperative measurements （56.5±11.1 mm versus 47.5±8.9 mm， P＜0.05；22.4±4.4 mm versus 20.1±3.3 mm， P＜0.05；62.8±20.1 mm versus 51.9±14.1 mm， P＜0.05）. During follow-up, 5 patients had moderate or severe TR （3.2%， 5/158, moderate in 4 patients, moderate to severe in 1 patient）. There was no significant difference between preoperative and postoperative left ventricle ejection fraction （60.4%±7.9% vervsus 59.6%±8.2%， P＞0.05）.?Conclusion?It is reasonable to perform tricuspid annuloplasty for patients with dilated tricuspid annulus and left-sided heart valve surgery according to their index of tricuspid annulus diameter/body surface area （≥21 mm/m2）. To prevent postoperative residue or progression of TR in patients with dilated tricuspid annulus,it is effective to employ combined bicuspidization and modified Kay annuloplasty.