Mechanism of aortic balloon valvuloplasty: fracture of valvular calcific deposits. Annals of internal medicine. [Ann Intern Med] Journal article

Balloon valvuloplasty has been shown to acutely reduce the hemodynamic and symptomatic severity of calcific aortic stenosis. The mechanism by which this improvement is accomplished is not known. At necropsy, three patients who died after hemodynamically successful aortic balloon valvuloplasty were found to have aortic valve calcific deposits fractured at one or more sites. These findings suggest that fracture of leaflet calcium represents the basis for successful aortic balloon valvuloplasty.

Annals of internal medicine. [Ann Intern Med]

Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Aortic Valve Stenosis
Balloon Dilatation
Calcinosis
Female
Hemodynamic Processes
Humans
Male
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.