Prosthetic heart valves on CXR

Prosthetic heart valves on CXR Approximate positions of the valves as seen on the CXR are marked in the picture below. A line connecting the pulmonary bay to the right cardiophrenic angle is used to get the positions of aortic and mitral valves. Mitral valve is below this line while aortic valve is above it. Tricuspid valve is a midline structure. But the actual positions may vary from case to case, especially with differential enlargement of the cardiac chambers. Most commonly replaced valves are the mitral and aortic, tricuspid next and pulmonary the least. Annuloplasty rings used for valve repair may also be seen on CXR. Approximate positions of cardiac valves on CXR Ball and cage prosthesis: The older valves were of ball and cage design. The prototype was Starr-Edwards valve which was the workhorse with valves functioning well in  a person over 5 decades. But due to other problems the valve has been discontinued. The design consists of cage with a sewing ring and struts. Mitral valve had four struts while the aortic had three struts. A ball shaped poppet moved back and forth during cardiac cycle to open and close the valve. Picture below shows a CXR with Starr Edwards prosthetic mitral valve. The valve ring and four struts are visible, but the silastic poppet being non radio opaque, is not visible. Prosthetic mitral valve – Starr Edwards Prosthesis (SEP) Tilting disc prosthesis: The initial Bjork Shiley valve which has been discontinued was a tilting disc valve. Curre...
Source: Cardiophile MD - Category: Cardiology Authors: Tags: HBC Ball and cage prosthesis Bjork Shiley valve CarboMedics bileaflet valve Medtronic Hall valve On-X bileaflet heart valve On-X valve Prosthetic mitral valve Prosthetic TTK Chitra aortic valve Prosthetic TTK Chitra mitral valve St. Ju Source Type: blogs