Long-term follow-up after mitral valve replacement in childhood: poor event-free survival in the young child☆

Abstract

At 10 years follow-up after mechanical mitral valve replacement, most children had suffered an adverse event. At 15 years, all children with a prosthesis<23 mm had outgrown their valve, but redo-mitral valve replacement with a larger size prosthesis was always possible, and carried low operative risk. Long-term anticoagulation was well tolerated. In children every effort should be made to preserve the native valve.