What is surgery to replace the heart’s valve called?
Coronary valve replacement surgery is a ‘open’ heart surgical operation to replace heart valves that have become susceptible to heart valve disease, or are aberrant in some way. Biological (produced from animal or human tissue) or artificial valves are used to replace valves.
Who can benefit from surgery to replace a heart valve?
Replacement of the coronary valve can significantly reduce symptoms or entirely reverse damage, improving quality of life for people with heart valve disease or endocarditis. Age can weaken the valves, and birth abnormalities that are not immediately treated may worsen. Both of these can also be causes for getting surgery to repair a damaged coronary valve.
Procedure
The number of heart valves that need to be changed will determine how long the procedure takes. There are four heart valves.
traditional replacement of the coronary valve – To access the heart, a cut will be made down the length of the breastbone. The heart is then medically stopped, and blood is sent to a heart-lung bypass machine to keep the heart beating. The heart is then restarted using electrical shocks after the damaged valve is replaced. Wires are used to seal the sternum, and the wound is stitched up.
minimally invasive procedures ‘Keyhole’ surgery, commonly referred to as minimally invasive surgery, is a less frequent operation. By using tiny incisions between the ribs, instruments can be inserted during this kind of surgery without the necessity for a cut down the sternum. The damaged valve is then replaced by the surgeon as he watches TV.
recuperation time
You’ll have to spend around a week in the hospital. When you go home, you can use medicines to reduce the discomfort that is present near the wound. It will take the sternum (breastbone) around six weeks to recover, so refrain from driving and other strenuous activity during that period. Additionally, you will require several weeks off from work.
Risks
Any surgical surgery has a chance of failure; specifically, risks with coronary valve replacement can include blood clotting (which could cause a stroke or heart attack), infection, damage to the new valve, and an erratic heartbeat (usually transient). A very small chance of dying both during and after the procedure exists as well. Before doing any treatment, your surgeon will go through all the risks with you in detail.
