Multiple purpose simulator using a natural porcine mitral valve.

An in vitro pulsatile simulator with a porcine mitral valve was developed in order to simulate physiologic and diseased mitral valve conditions. Evaluation of these conditions was conducted from a hydrodynamic and annulus behavior point of view. We found it possible to simulate mild "mitral valve prolapse" and to obtain quantitative data related to the condition. The diseased condition produced a 40% greater regurgitant volume than that observed under the normal condition (p < 0.0001). Regarding the leakage volume, the diseased condition exhibited about 2.6 times more leakage than the normal condition. The mitral valve simulator proposed in this study is considered fairly stable with respect to both hemodynamics and the behavior of the annulus, and it is an adequate simulator for modeling various types of normal and diseased mitral valve conditions.