Objective To improve the surgical results of infective endocarditis, the results and methods of aortic root replacement in patients with severe aortic valve infective or prosthetic valve endocarditis were summarized. Methods From Sept.1995 to June 2008, there were 11 patients with severe aortic valve endocarditis treated surgically, included 6 active endocarditis and 5 healed endocarditis. Preoperative arterial blood bacterial culture were positive in 6 patients. Preoperative echocardiography showed all patients had various degree of aortic regurgitation or paraprosthetic leakage, left ventricular endsystol
ic diameter(LVESD) was 6.0±0.7cm, LVESD was equal or greater than 5.5cm in 7 patients, left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) was 47.8%±11.2％, and LVEF was equal or less than 50% in 8 patients. After careful debridement, composite conduit (9 patients) or cryopreserved allograft (2 patients) was used to replace the aortic root. Concomitant procedures were coronary artery bypass grafting in 4 patients, mitral annuloplasty in 3 patients, and ventricular septal defect repair in 1 patient. Results There was one patient died of postoperative cardiac arrest, one patient had Ⅲ° atrioventricular block and pacemaker implanted. Ten patients were followed up, followup time were from 3 months to 13.2 years. During the followup period, one patient had recurrence of endocarditis and died, others survived uneventually. Conclusion Aortic root replacement must be considered in following patients: endocarditis combined with root aneurysm or sinus aneurysm, infectious disease involved in sinus wall or nearby coronary ostia, annulus impairment and severe destructive annulus after debridement. The key points of the surgery are debriding the infectious tissue completely, preventing aortic root bleeding. Although the root replacement is relatively complex, the surgical results could be improved after complete debridement of infectious tissue.

Citation： XU Zhiyun,ZOU Liangjian,LU Fanglin,et al .. Results and Methods of Aortic Root Replacement for the Patients with Severe Aortic Valve Infective Endocarditis. Chinese Journal of Clinical Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, 2009, 16(2): 82-85. doi: Copy

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