Mitral Valve Repair

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Surgical options for treating degenerative, ischemic, inflammatory, and functional mitral valve diseases have significantly evolved. A key challenge remains in choosing between prosthetic mitral valves—mechanical valves offer durability but require anticoagulation, while biological valves have unpredictable longevity. Recent advancements highlight that reconstructing the mitral valve using autologous tissues effectively resolves this issue, eliminating the need for anticoagulation and providing excellent durability. This approach merges the advantages of both prosthetic options without their drawbacks. Innovative repair strategies, including autologous pericardial leaflet augmentation and artificial chordal replacement, have broadened the scope of repair techniques, yielding outstanding long-term outcomes compared to prosthetic valve replacements. Currently, mitral repair is becoming the preferred procedure for nearly all patients with mitral valve disease. This book showcases contemporary and varied surgical techniques for mitral valve repair, featuring contributions from leading experts in the field. It compiles proceedings from the Berlin Heart Valve Symposium 2008, which focused on "The Biological Solution," and includes insights from the Berlin Mitral Valve Symposium held in June 2009. This authoritative reference serves cardiac surgeons, family practitioners, and clinicians by detailing current techniques and outcomes in