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Updated: Jun 8, 2026
An Ex Vivo Porcine Model for Hydrodynamic Testing of Experimental Aortic Valve Procedures and Novel Medical Devices
Published on: August 25, 2023
Morphological changes in porcine bioprosthetic valves of a HeartMate left ventricular assist device
Nasir A Khan1, Jagdish Butany, Taylor Zhou
1Department of Pathology, Toronto General Hospital, University of Toronto, Ontario.
Abstract:
A 27-year-old man who received a HeartMate (Thoratec Corporation, USA) left ventricular assist device for progressive heart failure as a bridge to orthotopic heart transplantation is described in the present report. The device failed (mechanical failure) after almost 19 months. The porcine bioprosthetic valves in the inflow and outflow cannulae showed hemorrhage, cusp tears and inflammatory cells, located largely on the inflow valve cusps. The role of the inflammatory cell reaction in the bioprosthetic valve is discussed.
