{"id":33345,"date":"2021-04-20T09:22:52","date_gmt":"2021-04-20T14:22:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.heart-valve-surgery.com\/heart-surgery-blog\/?p=33345"},"modified":"2021-05-06T11:48:28","modified_gmt":"2021-05-06T16:48:28","slug":"regurgitation-calcified-mitral-common","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.heart-valve-surgery.com\/heart-surgery-blog\/2021\/04\/20\/regurgitation-calcified-mitral-common\/","title":{"rendered":"“Is Mitral Regurgitation & Calcification Common After Mitral Valve Repair Surgery?” asks Linda"},"content":{"rendered":"

I just received a great question from Linda about the recurrence of mitral regurgitation<\/a>, a leaky heart valve, and calcification<\/a> after mitral valve repair surgery. In her note to me, Linda asked, \u201cI had mitral valve repair about 2 years ago and now I’ve developed regurgitation again. Also part of the valve is calcified. I am curious if this is common?\u201d<\/p>\n

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\"Calcified<\/p>\n

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To provide Linda an expert opinion for her very important question, I contacted Dr. Junaid Khan<\/a>, a leading cardiac surgeon at Alta Bates Summit Medical Center<\/a> in Oakland, California.\u00a0 As you may know, Dr. Khan is a long-time supporter of HeartValveSurgery.com having performed successful heart valve surgery on many patients in our community including Mildred Burns, Derek Daniels and Elain Ledoux.
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\"Dr.Dr. Junaid Khan (Alta Bates Summit Medical Center)<\/p>\n

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Dr. Khan Says…<\/h2>\n

I am happy to report that Dr. Khan wasted no time responding to Linda’s question.<\/p>\n

First, Dr. Khan addressed the prevalence of the recurrence of mitral regurgitation after a mitral valve repair surgery:
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Hi Linda – That is a great question and one I get asked often.\u00a0 Recurrent mitral valve regurgitation (moderate to severe) after repair at 5 years occurs at a rate of 5-30% in various studies. Failure is lower at higher volume programs.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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Second, Dr. Khan addressed the top reasons why a mitral valve repair procedure can fail:
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The most common cause of failure is roughly 33% technical failure of initial repair, 33% progression of valvular disease and 33 new pathology.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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Then, Dr. Khan addressed an interesting point about the valve structure and presence of calcium build-up on the valve prior to the initial mitral valve repair.
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Patients who have had bi-leaflet pathology and\/or significant calcium present at the initial surgery have a higher rate of failure than those with isolated posterior leaflet pathology and those without calcific disease.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

 
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\"CalcifiedCalcified Mitral Valve<\/p>\n

 
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Lastly, Dr. Khan specifically addressed whether-or-not calcium build-up on the valve typically happens within two years following mitral valve repair surgery<\/a>.
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In your case, generally calcium does not develop rapidly over two years.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

 
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Thanks Linda and Dr. Khan!<\/h2>\n

I hope this helped Linda (and perhaps you) learn more about the onset of mitral regurgitation and calcification after mitral valve repair surgery.<\/p>\n

Many thanks to Linda for submitting her question!\u00a0 And, a special thanks to Dr. Junaid Khan for sharing his clinical experiences and research with our community!<\/p>\n

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