Prosthesis‑Patient Mismatch after Aortic Valve Replacement: A Single‑Center Experience

Background: The impact of prosthesis‑patient mismatch (PPM) on early and late outcomes after aortic valve replacement (AVR) remains controversial. In this study, we aimed to investigate the patient and surgery‑related factors leading to various severities of PPM following AVR. Methods: Ninety‑six patients who had undergone AVR with a prosthetic valve between 2001 and 2013 and later found to have PPM were enrolled. PPM was defined as the indexed effective orifice area (iEOA) of the aortic prosthesis to be ≤0.8 cm2/m2. PPM was considered to be of moderate or severe degrees if the iEOA was between 0.66 and 0.85 cm2/m2 or ≤0.65 cm2/m2, respectively. Results: The mean age of patients was 26 ± 15 years, and 51% of patients were female. Sixteen patients (15.2%) had mild PPM, 40 patients (38.1%) had moderate PPM, and 40 patients (38.1%) had severe PPM. The majority of our patients had surgery due to congenital causes. Prosthetic valve size and preoperative left ventricular outflow tract diameter were factors statistically related to PPM in the three groups (P 0.05). There was only one death that was in severe PPM group due to severe heart failure. Conclusion: PPM is a substantial yet underrated clinical entity in patients undergoing prosthetic valve replacement surgery. Patients with smaller body surface areas, surgery at earlier age, and underlying congenital heart disease are more commonly prone to the development of PPM. As our center is referral for the patients affected with congenital aortic valve disease, mindful scheduling and performance of the aortic valve replacement surgery in this patient population is highly recommended.