Mitral valve replacement to treat heart valve disease without surgery are divided into three categories: Clinical Practice treatment (this is used in every day clinical practice), Investigational treatment (current clinical studies that are underway), Early Development treatment (early stages of investigation). People having mitral valve surgery receive general anesthesia. Incision can be made somewhat horizontally under the left breast, or vertically through the sternum. After the heart is exposed, canulae are placed to reroute blood to a heart-lung machine for cardiopulmonary bypass. An incision is made in the left atrium to expose the mitral valve. The valve is then replaced with either a
Mitral valve annuloplasty Mitral valve annuloplasty Mitral valve annuloplasty is a surgical technique for the repair of leaking mitral valves. Due to various factors, the two leaflets normally involved in sealing the mitral valve to retrograde flow may not coapt properly. Surgical repair typically involves the implantation of a device surrounding the mitral valve, called an annuloplasty device, which pulls the leaflets together to facilitate coaptation and aids to re-establish mitral valve function. Mitral regurgitation is the most common form of mitral valve dysfunction. Today more than 2.5 million Americans are estimated to be affected by mitral regurgitation. This number is expected to