 | ||||
|
|
Heart valve replacementHeart valves control blood flow as it moves in a specific sequence through the four chambers of the heart. Heart valve disease may result in blood flowing in the wrong order of chambers or allow blood to flow backwards into a chamber. Sometimes valves are too narrow and don't allow enough blood to flow into or out of a particular heart chamber. If valve disease cannot be controlled with medication or other treatments, a heart valve may have to be replaced with an artificial valve. Artificial valves have been in use for decades, but they seldom operate as well as healthy, natural valves. Most artificial valves are either mechanical in nature or are bioprosthetic (harvested from a pig's heart) and implanted into the patient's heart. Patients with a mechanical valve must take anti-coagulant drugs to reduce the risk of blood clots. Patients with a bioprosthetic valve do not require anti-coagulants, but this type of valve doesn't last as long as a mechanical valve. Mechanical valves may last 20 or more years, while bioprostheic valves last only about 10 years in adults and less than that in children. Learn more about robotic-assisted heart valve replacement Learn more about heart valve replacement [ Previous page ] |
||
 |
||||
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
