Sutureless Aortic Valve Replacement A Meta-Analysis

Abstract

The idea behind sutureless aortic valve replacement is aimed mainly at the reduction of the cross clamp time by reducing the number of sutures needed to secure the valve in place by employing other methods of fixation that are less time consuming. The benefits of the sutureless valves are not limited to the reduced cross clamp time(83); a study done between 2007 and 2011 involving 128 patients with small aortic annulus compared between the use of a conventional valve with aortic root enlargement versus the use of the Perceval sutureless valve and concluded that the use of sutureless valves is a viable alternative to aortic root enlargement especially in older patient groups with more comorbidities who could benefit from the shortened cross clamp time.(84) Our study tried to assess the safety and efficacy of sutureless aortic valves. While outcomes like mortality, thromboembolic events, PVL, permanent pacemaker implantation, length of ICU stay, and PPM helped to shed some light on the safety of these prosthesis’s, other outcomes like MPG, PPG, EOA, and iLVM assessed their efficacy in patients with aortic valve stenosis. The current analysis showed that SU-AVR is a safe procedure with low mortality and complication rates, showing satisfactory efficacy. More studies with longer follow up periods, larger sample sizes and more randomization and blinding are needed to efficiently assess the potential implementations of sutureless aortic valve replacement especially for high risk operable patients.