Aortic and mitral valve replacement with the Carpentier-Edwards pericardial bioprosthesis: mid-term clinical results

Between May 1st 1985 and December 31st 1992, 283 Carpentier-Edwards pericardial valves were implanted in 260 patients in the aortic (n = 196), mitral (n = 41) and both aortic and mitral (n = 23) positions at the Gasthuisberg University Hospital in Leuven, Belgium. Patients undergoing tricuspid valve replacement or mixed replacement with another type of prosthesis were excluded from this study. The mean age was 70 +/- 7 years, there were 121 males and 139 females. The mean follow up was 40.55 months, the total follow up experience 10543 months (878.6 patients years). Hospital mortality was 10.4%, and was not significantly related to the position of the valve: 17.3% +/- 7.88% (n = 23) for double valve replacement, 10.2% +/- 2.16% (n = 196) for aortic valve replacement and 7.3% +/- 4.06% (n = 41) for mitral valve replacement. Hospital mortality was 14.1% +/- 3.27% for those with and 7.48% +/- 2.5% for those without concomitant coronary surgery (p = NS). Survival at 92 months was 63% +/- 6% and was not significantly related to the position of the valve. Not a single patient needed to be reoperated because of primary tissue failure. We conclude that the mid-term durability of this valve is excellent and consider the Carpentier-Edwards pericardial valve as the stented bioprosthesis of choice both in the aortic and mitral positions for the elderly. Because of the older age of our study population and the medium term length of follow up, we were unable to draw any conclusions concerning the incidence of calcific degeneration of this valve.