Predictors of survival after tricuspid valve surgery

The long-term survival rate of 74 consecutive patients who underwent multiple cardiac valve surgery including tricuspid valve surgery was analyzed to identify predictive preoperative clinical variables. Univariate analysis revealed that male sex (P less than 0.04), symptoms of New York Heart Association functional class IV heart failure (p less than 0.004), ascites or pulmonary edema (p less than 0.01), high preoperative bilirubin level (p less than 0.012), mean pulmonary artery pressure greater than 40 mm Hg (p less than 0.038) and pulmonary vascular resistance greater than 6 Wood units (p less than 0.02) were each associated with an increased risk of death after surgery. Stepwise multivariate analysis indicated that severity of preoperative edema and mean pulmonary artery pressure were the most predictive combination of independent variables. These 2 variables were used to calculate an estimated probability of 1-year survival after surgery for patients with multivalvular cardiac decompensation. Recognition of these preoperative variables should assist the clinician in determining the risk of surgical intervention.