Etiology impacts survival in patients with severe aortic regurgitation: results from a cohort of 756 patients.

Background And Aim Of The Study: Severe aortic regurgitation (AR) is caused by a variety of mechanisms, which include the degenerative process, bicuspid aortic valve (BAV), aortic root dilation, endocarditis or a combination of these. Their frequency in a contemporary clinical series, and their impact on survival, are currently unknown.

Methods: The authors' echocardiographic database between 1993 and 2007 was screened for patients with severe AR, and yielded 756 patients.