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Updated: May 11, 2026

Fully Endoscopic Mitral Valve Repair with Percutaneous Cannulation of Groin Vessels
Published on: May 26, 2023
Successful treatment of mechanical mitral valve thrombosis without thrombolytic therapy or surgery
Hamad F Al Habib1, Christopher Tarola, Pantelis Diamantorous
1Division of Cardiac Surgery, Department of Surgery, Western University, Lawson Health Research Institute, London, Ontario, Canada.
Abstract:
Prosthetic valve thrombosis is an uncommon, life-threatening complication that often mandates urgent repeat surgery or thrombolytic therapy. We present an alternative approach in a patient with rheumatic heart disease who presented with subacute thrombosis of a recently implanted On-X mechanical mitral valve (On-X Life Technologies Inc, Austin, TX), diagnosed on echocardiography and valve fluoroscopy. The patient refused surgery, hence we elected to treat the patient with high-dose antithrombotic therapy alone. Echocardiographic monitoring demonstrated complete reabsorption of the thrombus within 6 months without any embolic complications. Endogenous fibrinolysis with appropriate antithrombotic therapy might be a suitable option for select, high-risk patients with mechanical mitral valve thrombosis.
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