The role of palmaris muscle tendon in mitral valve annulus reconstruction: a novel technique for mitral valve repair.

Background: Autogenous tissue for heart valve repair is limited to pericardium and fascia lata. Prosthetic annuloplasty rings have limitations and are expensive. No previous cadaveric study has documented autotransplantation of forearm tendons for mitral valve repair. The purposes of this anatomical study were (1) to determine the feasibility of using tendons for annular reconstruction during mitral valve repair (band or ring shape) and (2) to compare the metric dimensions and gross morphology with those of prosthetic rings.

Methods: The palmaris tendon (PM) (n = 7) was harvested from forearms of human cadavers and prepared in the dissecting room. The tendon was incorporated along the valve annulus. Surgery consisted of mitral valve annuloplasty performed with an undersized and a complete tendon.

Results: On gross handling PM tissue was morphologically resilient. Preparation and use of PM for annuloplasty were feasible. Anatomical reconstruction of the annulus with autogenous tissue using this tendon also was feasible. The annulus behaved as a flexible ring that allowed for improved atrioventricular continuity. Complete (n = 7) and partial (n = 7) annuloplasty rings were constructed. Metric dimensions were similar to those of prosthetic rings.

Conclusion: PM is a suitable novel autogenous tissue that can be harvested together with the radial artery and has direct relevance in ischemic mitral valve regurgitation. These tendons can be easily utilized to achieve results similar to those of pericardial reconstruction and prosthetic annuloplasty rings. The tissue is readily available from the patient, and no extra cost is incurred. Further chemical studies in the human subjects are warranted.