Mitral valve replacement replacement include lower surgical mortality (1-2% for repair versus 6-8% for replacement), lower risk of stroke, lower rate of endocardial infection, and improved long-term survival. Patients who receive a valve repair stay on the same survival curve as the normal population. After mitral valve repair, blood thinners are not required; however, lifelong maintenance on blood thinners is required after mechanical mitral valve replacement. Mitral valve surgery can now also be performed robotically although the procedure may take longer. Most patients can endure surgery without complications; however, there are some whose heart functions are too weak to withstand surgery. Non-surgical approaches
Mitral insufficiency during a cardiac cycle. Methods that have been used to assess the regurgitant fraction in mitral regurgitation include echocardiography, cardiac catheterization, fast CT scan, and cardiac MRI. The echocardiographic technique to measure the regurgitant fraction is to determine the forward flow through the mitral valve (from the left atrium to the left ventricle) during ventricular diastole, and comparing it with the flow out of the left ventricle through the aortic valve in ventricular systole. This method assumes that the aortic valve does not suffer from aortic insufficiency. Another way to quantify the degree of MR is to determine the area