David Adams, MD, Cardiac Surgeon-in-Chief of the Mount Sinai Health System introduces a presentation by Anelechi Anyanwu, MD, FRCS, Professor and Vice Chair of the Department of Cardiovascular Surgery at the Icahn School of Medicine of Mount Sinai.

Join Dr. Anyanwu as he explores the various options for aortic valve replacement in an engaging and lively presentation. While certain guidelines are set by the AHA/ACC, he emphasizes that the choice needs to be a conversation between the doctor and patient. Dr. Anyanwu discusses the pros and cons of valve replacement with a:

• Mechanical valve
• Xenograft or biological valve
• Pulmonary autograft or Ross operation
• Homograft

Some of the factors he examines are patient age, quality of life, and lifestyle. One issue that is often not addressed is the mental adjustment of the patient, post-surgery. Dr. Anyanwu provides a wealth of patient anecdotes that bring home the difficulties some patients experience adjusting to a mechanical valve.

The final choice, he points out, involves a tradeoff of risks. Dr. Anyanwu provides statistical evidence for both short-term and long-term risks, and weighs them for different age categories.

In addition, he takes the audience through a variety of case scenarios and poses choices in a multiple-choice format. During the course of discussion with the audience, he provides studies that support different choices.