Annular management during aortic valve repair: a systematic review

Annuloplasty is considered to play a key role to control aortic valve regurgitation (AR) and prevent recurrence of AR after aortic valve repair, because aortic root dilatation has emerged as a risk factor for recurrence of AR. Various modifications of annuloplasty have been advocated, however, none of them has become standardized. Thus in this review they are outlined and classified (internal/external, with/without ring, rigid/flexible ring), and their advantages and disadvantages are clarified. Their clinical outcomes seem currently acceptable in general, and external flexible annuloplasty has been performed more frequently with favorable outcomes. However, they are still performed for a minority of patients by special experienced teams with limited follow-up periods. Therefore, it seems too early to determine the superiority or inferiority of each approach. We must carefully conduct evaluation to clarify which approach will become reproducible, effective, and standardized.