Thoracic Key

INTRODUCTION Print Section Listen The tricuspid valve consists of three leaflets (anterior, posterior, and septal), the chordae tendinea, two discrete papillary muscles, the fibrous tricuspid annulus, and the right atrial…

INTRODUCTION Print Section Listen This chapter discusses the surgical indications, operative techniques, and early and late follow-up after implantation of mechanical and bioprosthetic mitral valve devices. The valves that are…

INTRODUCTION Print Section Listen Patients with thoracic aortic disease pose many challenges. Frequently, these patients are older and present with multiple comorbidities. Additionally, the posterior location of the descending thoracic…

INTRODUCTION Print Section Listen The number of patients undergoing reoperation for valvular heart disease is increasing and will continue to increase as the general population ages.1 These reoperations most commonly…

INTRODUCTION Print Section Listen Mitral valve infective endocarditis (IE) is one of the more devastating complications of mitral valve disease, and if left untreated, it is universally fatal, like any…

INTRODUCTION Print Section Listen Recently, there have been exciting developments involving new technologies for the surgical treatment of valvular heart disease associated with coronary artery disease (CAD). Interventional therapies for…

FUNCTIONAL ANATOMY OF THE AORTIC VALVE Print Section Listen The aortic valve is a complex structure that is best described as a functional and anatomic unit, the aortic root. The…

INTRODUCTION Print Section Listen Isolated, non-reoperative congenital mitral valve abnormalities in adults are rare.1,2 Mitral pathology concurrent with other cardiac anomalies is less rare. Atrial septal defect is the third…

INTRODUCTION Print Section Listen Aortic valve surgery started with the implantation of the Hufnagel valve in the descending thoracic aorta in 1956. Its evolution over time has culminated with the…

INTRODUCTION Print Section Listen Pathologic changes in the cardiac valves requiring surgical correction of more than one valve can result from rheumatic heart disease, degenerative valve diseases, infective endocarditis, and…