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Updated: Nov 23, 2025
Transcatheter Pulmonary Valve Replacement from Autologous Pericardium with a Self-Expandable Nitinol Stent in an Adult Sheep Model
Published on: June 8, 2022
Evolution of pulmonary valve reconstruction with focused review of expanded polytetrafluoroethylene handmade valves
Te-I Chang1,2,3, Kang-Hong Hsu4,5, Shao-Jung Li1,2,6
1Division of Cardiovascular Surgery, Department of Surgery, Wan Fang Hospital, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan.
Objectives:
Many surgeons develop unique techniques for unmet needs for right ventricular outflow reconstruction to resolve pulmonary regurgitation after corrective surgery for congenital heart diseases. Expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (ePTFE) stands out as a reliable synthetic material, and clinical results with handmade ePTFE valves have been promising. This review focuses on the historical evolution of the use of ePTFE in pulmonary valve replacement and in the techniques for pioneering the translation of the handmade ePTFE trileaflet design for the transcatheter approach.
Methods:
We searched for and reviewed publications from 1990 to 2020 in the Pubmed database. Nineteen clinical studies from 2005 to 2019 that focused on ePTFE-based valves were summarized. The evolution of the ePTFE-based valve over 3 decades and recent relevant in vitro studies were investigated.
Results:
The average freedom from reintervention or surgery in the recorded ePTFE-based valve population was 90.2% at 5 years, and the survival rate was 96.7% at 3 years.
Conclusions:
Non-inferior clinical results of this ePTFE handmade valve were revealed compared to allograft or xenograft options for pulmonary valve replacement. Future investigations on transferring ePTFE trileaflet design to transcatheter devices should be considered.
