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Heart Valve Replacement Surgery – Valves & Their Function:
There are 4 valves inside the heart – two on the right side of the heart and two on the left side. The Tricuspid valve and Pulmonic valve are located on the right side of the heart, Mitral and Aortic valve are located on the left side of the heart.
All the valves in the heart are one-way valves – i.e. they open up to allow blood flow in one direction avoiding the blood flow back. For example Mitral valve on the left side, opens up to allow blood to flow from the upper chamber to the lower chamber and closes to avoid blood going backwards – the blood from the lower chamber now is pumped out through the aortic valve.
In a few cases, the leaflets of the mitral valve fail to close properly, possibly leading to backward blood flow. Similarly, the aortic valve which allows the blood to pass from lower chambers to the rest of the body through the aorta may also not close optimally resulting in blood flowing back into the lower chambers.
Heart Valve Replacement Surgery – Types:
This valve malfunction can happen to any of the valves – Aortic, Mitral or even Pulmonary valve, impeding the heart’s ability to pump blood. These heart valve diseases can result in chest pain, shortness of breath, light-headedness, swollen ankles, and difficulty to sustain regular activity level, or even no symptoms – which can be dangerous.
In mild cases this malfunction can be treated medically and in severe cases, the valves need to be replaced leading to heart valve replacement surgery. Aortic valve replacement surgery, Mitral valve replacement surgery, Double valve replacement surgery (both aortic & mitral) and Pulmonary valve replacement surgeries are commonly performed heart valve replacement surgeries in India.
Heart Valve Replacement Surgery – Procedure:
Heart Valve Replacement Surgery is performed by a heart surgeon using conventional or minimally invasive techniques based on his expertise and the specific condition of the patient. While a conventional heart surgery procedure involves a large incision from the navel to the neck, minimally invasive procedure use short incisions that accelerates the recovery and also reduces the risk of infection.
For the heart surgeon to remove and replace the valve, the patient’s heart must be kept still which is why the patient is placed on a bypass machine that replaces the function of the heart and keeps the blood circulating. The valves used for heart valve replacement surgery can mechanical valves (lasts lifetime), donor valves and tissues valves which last for up to 20 years. The patients who receive mechanical valves are put on blood thinner medications and young patients who receive tissue valves are more likely to have additional surgery.
Being an advanced heart surgery procedure heart valve replacement surgery needs the expertise of an experienced heart surgeon with an excellent track record of heart valve replacement surgery in India. That said, Padma Shri awardee Alla Gopala Krishna Gokhale is the best heart surgeon in India and a world-renowned expert in minimally invasive heart surgery procedures for heart valve replacements. If you are in Hyderabad and are looking for consultation regarding heart valve replacement in Hyderabad, you can directly make an appointment here: +919603040506