Type of Surgery
Information
Last updated: 02/17/2009
Balloon valvuloplasty is considered a safe, effective treatment in children with congenital stenosis, improving heart function and blood flow. In adults, balloon valvuloplasty may give temporary relief and improve heart function and blood flow, but...
underlying coronary artery disease or other disease conditions may encourage restenosis, making valve replacement eventually necessary. The most successful valvuloplasty results are achieved in treating narrowed pulmonary valves, although the treatment of mitral valve stenosis is also generally good. The aortic valve procedure is more difficult to perform and is generally less successful.
Advertisement
Search
Other Information
Balloon valvuloplasty is a procedure in which a thin tube (catheter) that has a small deflated balloon at the tip is inserted through the skin in the groin area into a blood vessel, and then is threaded up to the opening of the narrowed heart valve. The balloon is inflated, which stretches the valve open. This procedure cures many valve obstructions. It is also called balloon enlargement of a narrowed heart valve.
The procedure is performed in a cardiac catheterization laboratory and takes up to four hours. The patient is usually awake, but is given local anesthesia to make the area where the catheter is inserted numb. After the site where the catheter will be inserted is prepared and anesthetized, the cardiologist inserts a catheter into the appropriate blood vessel, then passes a balloon-tipped catheter through the first catheter. Guided by a video monitor and an x ray, the physician slowly threads the catheter into the heart. The deflated balloon is positioned in the valve opening, then is inflated repeatedly. The inflated balloon widens the valve's opening by splitting the valve leaflets apart. Once the valve is widened, the balloon-tipped catheter is removed. The other catheter remains in place for 6 to 12 hours because in some cases the procedure must be repeated.
From https://www.lifesteps.com/gm/Atoz/ency/balloon_valvuloplasty.jsp
Other Information
From 1979–2005, the total number of inpatient cardiovascular operations and procedures increased 484 percent to 6,989,000 annually. (AHA computation.)
From: AHA computation
Find a Qualified Specialist
Looking for a specialist?
Please enter your zip code.