Two patients with mechanical aortic valve replacement survived 27 and 37 years event-free without any form of anticoagulation, representing the longest reported survival of this kind.
Case Report (n=2)
Can patients with mechanical aortic valve replacement survive long-term without anticoagulation?
Demonstrates that exceptionally long event-free survival (up to 37 years) is possible in rare cases of mechanical aortic valve replacement without anticoagulation, despite current guidelines mandating it.
Sixty percent of the patients going for valve replacement opt for mechanical valves and the remaining 40% choose bioprosthetics. Mechanical valves are known to have a higher risk of thrombosis; this risk further varies depending on the type of valve, its position, and certain individual factors. According to current guidelines, long-term anticoagulation is indicated in patients with metallic prosthetic valve disease. We report two unique cases of patients who survived 27 and 37 years event free, respectively, after mechanical aortic valve replacement (AVR) without being on any form of anticoagulation. The latter case described the longest survival in a human with a prosthetic aortic valve without anticoagulation. A review of literature demonstrated few cases of prosthetic valves with no anticoagulation in the long term without significant embolic events reported as case reports. These cases have been summarized in this article. Some cases of long-term survival (in the absence of anticoagulation) were attributed to good luck, and others as the result of genetic variations. New mechanical prosthetic valves can be promising, such as microporus-surfaced valves that may be used without full anticoagulation. The use of dual antiplatelet agents alone can be currently recommended only when a patient cannot take oral anticoagulation after AVR, and it should be followed with measuring and monitoring of platelet reactivity.
Salmane et al. (Fri,) conducted a case report in Mechanical aortic valve replacement (n=2). No anticoagulation was evaluated on Event-free survival. Two patients with mechanical aortic valve replacement survived 27 and 37 years event-free without any form of anticoagulation, representing the longest reported survival of this kind.