Heart valve replacement surgery in India

Overview

Heart valve replacement surgery is a procedure by which surgeons remove a damaged heart valve and substitute it with grafts or parts from body tissues or with synthetic heart valves to restore the normal functioning of the heart.

Heart valve replacement surgery is done under general anaesthesia and takes about four to five hours. The surgery is done either as an open-heart surgery where in the patient is put on a heart lung machine or rarely as beating heart surgery without the use of heart lung machine, while the patient's heart is normally beating.

There can be various reasons for heart valve replacements like:

Mitral valve regurgitation is a condition where the oxygenated blood flows backwards into the lungs as opposed to flowing through. Patients have angina arrhythmia and shortness of breath.
Narrowed valve is one more reason for valve replacement in cases like aortic stenosis or mitral stenosis.
When the valve is leaky, like in aortic regurgitation or aortic insufficiency, the condition requires valve replacements. Left untreated it may lead to heart failure.

Valve defects can be congenital that is a birth defect or can be a result of degenerative mechanism. Other causes for valve damage can be infections such as bacterial endocarditis or ischemic heart disease.

Aortic and mitral are the most commonly replaced valves whereas pulmonary and tricuspid are not commonly replaced. The replaced valves can be made either of tissues from animals or humans and mechanical valves made of man-made material.

Tissue valve where animal or human donor is used
Mechanical valve is made of durable materials

Mechanical valve made of durable materials

Candidates

The Valve Replacement surgery is indicated in following conditions:

Congenital Heart Valve Diseases such as narrow or leaking valves, bicuspid aortic valves.Acquired Heart Valve Diseases such as Calcification of the valves, Infection such as Infective endocarditis or Syphilis, Rheumatic valve disease, Angina, tumours of the valve, Hypertension, enlarged heart muscles known as Cardiomyopathy, increased opening of annulus of the valve and Aortic aneurysm to name a few.

Procedure

Tissue valve where animal or human donor is used

Valve replacement surgery is done under general anaesthesia and takes about four to five hours. The surgery is done either as an open-heart surgery where in the patient is put on a heart lung machine or rarely as beating heart surgery without the use of heart lung machine, while the patient's heart is normally beating.

After the incision and separation of the breastbone and ribs, the surgeon opens the heart and traces the faulty valve. The edges around the valve are slightly sliced to help loosen it from the tendons that connect it to the rest of the heart and then the valve can be removed.

The new valve is then inserted and attached into place. After the surgery is done, the patient is taken off the bypass machine and the chest is closed.

Recovery

The patient is taken to ICU or high dependency unit for close monitoring and after he/ she is stable, transferred to the room. The patient is advised to start walking as soon as possible to increase the blood circulation for quick recovery. Cardiac rehabilitation is almost always advised to the patients to regain strength.

Expected Results

Valve replacement surgery has an exceptional outcome and gives extremely satisfying results. Majority of patients who undergo the procedure return to normal activities after the operation. Their quality of life also improves because they no longer have difficulty breathing, fainting spells, or palpitations.

Time & Cost

A stay of 1-3 days in the intensive care unit (ICU) for close monitoring after the surgery and another 5-6 days in the hospital. A total stay of two weeks are required for valve replacement surgery in India. One can generally return to work or other normal activities within two months of the surgery.

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