Quality & Outcomes: Aortic Valve-Sparing Root Procedures
Valve-sparing aortic root replacement preserves the native valve, thus avoiding life-long anticoagulation and improving hemodynamic performance. In 2007, Penn cardiovascular surgeons continued to successfully treat patients previously contraindicated for these complex procedures, including older and high-risk patients with previous aortic dissections, bicuspid aortic valve procedures and Marfan Syndrome.
Aortic Root Procedures
"Biological" aortic root replacement has become a safe option for patients with various aortic root pathologies. However, as this cohort of patients continues to rise in number and age, one can expect reoperative aortic root replacement to become an increasingly common clinical and technical challenge.
Marfan Syndrome
An interdisciplinary effort to convert laboratory findings into medical practice has brought Penn to world leading status in the treatment of patients with Marfan Syndrome, an inheritable connective tissue disorder associated with aneurysm of the ascending aorta.
The gene for Marfan was discovered by a group of leading scientists and geneticists that included an active member of the Thoracic Aortic Surgery Program at Penn, Reed Pyeritz, MD, PhD. Penn is consistently ranked among the top three enrollers in the nation for the National Registry of Genetically Triggered Thoracic Aortic Aneurysms and Cardiovascular Conditions (GenTAC).
For patients with Marfan Syndrome and others with aortic root aneurysms, Penn surgeons have studied and refined the David-V Re-implantation technique, a modification of the David procedure that replaces diseased tissue while sparing the patient’s own aortic valve.
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