Prosthetic Heart Valves and Related Complications: A Review

The diagnosis and management of valvular heart disease relies on the patient's presenting symptoms, comprehensive physical examination, especially auscultatory findings, and radiographic assessments. Treatment options range from medicinal therapy through percutaneous procedures to typical valve replacement surgeries. The selection of valve replacement often involves mechanical valves and bioprosthetic valves. Unfortunately, an ideal valve does not exist, and all of the available prosthetic heart valves have inherent flaws that influence the choice of valves utilized for the patients. Prosthetic heart valves dramatically enhance the symptoms and quality of life in people with valvular heart disease. They may, however, have significant potential adverse effects. Some of these complications include thromboembolic events, valverelated haemolysis, prosthetic valve endocarditis, patient-prosthesis mismatch and valve-related sound complaints. Many of these issues are common to all valve types although the incidence of occurrence changes greatly depending on the kind of valve prosthesis. This difference forms an essential aspect in determining the type of valve to utilize in patients that have met the criteria.