Valve Replacement in Patients Over 70 Years

• Published in: The Annals of thoracic surgery Vol. 24; no. 5; pp. 417 - 421
• Main Authors: Bessone, Luis N., Pupello, Dennis F., Blank, Richard H., Harrison, Eric E., Sbar, Sheldon
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier Inc 01-11-1977
• Subjects: Age Factors; Aged; Aortic Valve - surgery; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Heart Valve Diseases - mortality; Heart Valve Prosthesis - mortality; Humans; Male; Mitral Valve - surgery; Postoperative Complications
• ISSN: 0003-4975; 1552-6259
• DOI: 10.1016/S0003-4975(10)63434-0

From July, 1972, to April, 1976, 54 consecutive patients over the age of 70 years underwent valve replacement at Tampa General Hospital. Twenty-one patients had isolated aortic valve replacement (Group 1), 14 had isolated mitral valve replacement (Group 2), and 19 had combined procedures that included at least 1 valve replacement (Group 3).
There was 1 operative death (in Group 1), and another patient (Group 3) died three weeks postoperatively, resulting in an early mortality of 3.7%. Follow-up of the 52 hospital survivors from one to forty-one months reveals 2 additional deaths for a late mortality of 3.8%. Cardiac status improved noticeably in the surviving 50 patients. The data suggests that with current techniques, complex intracardiac procedures can be performed safely with acceptable operative mortality and a satisfactory prognostic outlook in elderly patients.