A team of doctors performed a mitral valve replacement on a 38-year-old man with an imported tissue valve, MITRIS.
The patient from Madurai was suffering from severe breathlessness due to mitral valve failure. He approached MGM Healthcare after consultations at other hospitals where he was advised to get a metallic valve replacement. He was looking for an option without a metallic valve and lifelong blood thinning medications, according to a press release.
A. B. Gopalamurugan, senior consultant, interventional cardiology and electrophysiology, Director of TAVR and Endovascular Therapy, MGM Healthcare, said that usually, any person below the age of 60 who needs a valve surgery receives a metallic valve. “So, the person has to be on blood thinning medications and needs monitoring lifelong. Blood thinning medications have a major bleeding risk. Also, if medications are not taken adequately, the valve would stop working as blood clots on it,” he told reporters on Tuesday.
Metallic valves last for nearly 20 years. “The patient did not want a metallic valve. So, we opted for the latest tissue valve, MITRIS, which is designed for young persons and has no need for blood thinners. This is not available in India, and we obtained a special permission from the government to import it from the U.S.,” he said. The surgery was performed on February 19.
If the person requires another surgery after 15 to 20 years, the valve can be replaced without an open heart surgery through Transcatheter Mitral Valve Replacement, he said.
