Summary

Although mitral valve repair is well established, initial reports of the success of aortic valve repair were mixed. A review of 11 studies from 1990 to 2002, including 761 patients who underwent aortic valve repair, reported that the durability of the repairs was unclear and that patients with rheumatic valvular disease had an increased incidence of recurrence and repair failure [Carr JA, Savage EB. Eur J Cardiothorac Surg 2004]. Since that report, new standardized techniques have been developed for durable aortic valve repair, making it a viable and favorable option when anatomically possible.