[Normal echo-Doppler values in Duromedics valvular prostheses].

To determine the value of Doppler echocardiography in the normal clinical use of functional diagnosis, and to define normal values of prosthetic mitral and aortic valves, of different sizes and in different positions, 48 patients (53 Duromedics prosthesis) were examined. Two groups were formed: the first group (12 patients) was studied soon after operation, i.e. less than 3 weeks; the second group (36 patients) was examined at a later stage i.e. 2-60 months later. This group did not present any associated valvular disease (i.e. there was no aortic disease in patients with mitral prostheses nor mitral disease in patients with aortic prostheses). In the first group the following results were found: DP max = 12.70 +/- 4 mmHg, DP mean = 4.0 +/- 3 mmHg, Half Time Pressure (T 1/2) = 79.57 +/- 17 ms in mitral prostheses; DP max = 25 +/- 10.9 mmHg, DP mean = 6.8 +/- 4 mmHg in aortic prostheses. In the second group the findings were as follows: mitral prostheses: DP max = 9.28 +/- 3.32 mmHg, DP mean = 3.0 +/- 1.0 mmHg, T 1/2 = 80 +/- 17.96 ms; aortic prostheses: DP max = 19.0 +/- 9.59 mmHg, DP mean = 6.0 +/- 3 mmHg. A trend towards higher DP values was noted in the first group of mitral prostheses (p = 0.05 only for DP max; for DP mean no statistic significance). No differences were noted either between the first and second group as regards aortic prostheses. For prosthetic mitral valves permissible upper limits of DP max, DP mean and T 1/2 in the first and second groups were respectively: 16.70 mmHg, 7.0 mmHg, 96.57 ms; and 12.26 mmHg, 4.0 mmHg, 105.96 ms.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)