Intraoperative echocardiography in mitral and tricuspid valve repair

Echocardiography with Doppler color flow mapping is a very useful intraoperative technique in patients undergoing mitral or tricuspid valve repair. In the patient who is a repair candidate, this technique can be used intraoperatively to answer important clinical questions: the severity of the regurgitation; the morphological basis of the regurgitant lesion; and the feasibility of repair. Other important issues such as the impact of physiological interventions on regurgitation severity, the presence of associated lesions, and the state of ventricular function can also be addressed. In the patient who has undergone a valve repair, this technique can be used intraoperatively prior to chest closure to assess the adequacy of the repair procedure and to detect associated complications such as outflow tract obstruction.