Björk-Shiley and Carpentier-Edwards valves. A comparative analysis.

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Biomedical Engineering
• Surgical Innovation

Background:

• Mechanical heart valves are crucial for treating valvular heart disease.
• Björk-Shiley and Carpentier-Edwards valves are widely used prostheses.
• Comparative studies are essential to guide clinical decision-making.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the clinical performance of Björk-Shiley and Carpentier-Edwards mechanical heart valves.
• To evaluate outcomes such as mortality, embolism, endocarditis, and reoperation rates.
• To assess long-term valve-related events and identify any prosthesis-specific advantages.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of 986 Björk-Shiley and 744 Carpentier-Edwards valve implantations.
• Follow-up duration ranged from 0 to 8.8 years.
• Statistical comparison of hospital mortality, embolism, endocarditis, periprosthetic leak, anticoagulant complications, valve failure, reoperation, and late mortality.

Main Results:

• No significant differences in hospital mortality, embolism, endocarditis, periprosthetic leak, anticoagulant complications, valve failure, or late mortality between the two valve types.
• Björk-Shiley valves showed better freedom from embolism in the aortic position (p=0.023).
• Björk-Shiley valves had a higher reoperation rate in the mitral position within 6 years (p=0.004), primarily due to valve failure, though this difference became insignificant when solely considering valve failure (p=0.085).

Conclusions:

• Both Björk-Shiley and Carpentier-Edwards valves exhibit satisfactory short- and middle-term performance.
• No definitive advantage was found for either prosthesis in this comparative study.
• Clinical outcomes suggest comparable efficacy, supporting their continued use based on institutional experience and patient-specific factors.