Open-Heart Correction of Mitral Valvular Disease: Review of 30 Cases

Thirty patients with mitral valve disease operated upon by the open-heart technique during the period 1958-1962 were studied. In 15 insufficiency predominated. Clinical, radiological and pathological findings included the following: aortic valve disease is the commonest associated lesion; cusp calcification is uncommon in mitral insufficiency; left atrial enlargement is more pronounced in mitral insufficiency; a relaxed annulus is the commonest pathological lesion associated with mitral insufficiency, with ruptured chordae in second place. Five of the 15 patients with mitral insufficiency and four of the 15 with mitral stenosis died during the postoperative period, while clinical improvement was apparent in seven and 11, in the respective groups. The standard techniques of annuloplasty, suturing of ruptured chordae, and open commissurotomy were found to provide satisfactory results. Partial Ivalon prosthetic replacement was unsatisfactory. The study suggests that a more liberal use of the open-heart procedure in surgical correction of complicated mitral valve lesions is indicated.