[Mitral valve replacement with preservation of papillary muscles and chordae tendineae: a report of 53 cases].

Mitral valve replacement with preservation of papillary muscles and chordae tendineae (MVRP) was carried out in 53 cases in this group, among whom 17 underwent combined mitral and aortic valve replacement (AVR), 36 underwent simple mitral valve replacement (MVR) and tricuspid valve plasty was performed in 28 cases simultaneously. All the patients were given echocardiography one and six months after operation respectively which showed: (1) The left ventrical function of this group was obviously superior to that of the conventional mitral valve replacement (MVRC) group in the same period (SVI, EF, FS, P < 0.05) (2) The open shut velocity of the prosthetic disc was quicker (3) The contradictory movement of the ventrical septum disappeared. The follow-up for 2 to 36 months showed that all the patients were alive and healthy. It is suggested that MVRP can facilitate better recovery of the left ventrical function than MVRC and long-term results are excellent.