Effect of preoperative statin therapy on patients undergoing isolated and combined valvular heart surgery.

Background: It is unknown whether patients undergoing valve surgery benefit from preoperative statin therapy. We examined the effects of statin treatment in a large group of patients undergoing valve surgery.

Methods: Between October 2001 and May 2008, a total of 10,061 patients underwent isolated or combined valve surgery at our institution.

How does the use of polytetrafluoroethylene neochordae for posterior mitral valve prolapse (loop technique) compare with leaflet resection? A prospective randomized trial.

Objective: Mitral valve surgery for posterior mitral leaflet prolapse consists mostly of leaflet resection, but implantation of premeasured polytetrafluoroethylene neochordae (ie, loops) is another option. The aim of this prospectively randomized trial was to determine how preservation of leaflet structure in combination with premeasured neochordae compares with the widely adopted technique of leaflet resection.

Methods: A total of 129 patients with severe mitral regurgitation, with a mean mitral regurgitation grade of 3.