Comparative Hydrodynamic Evaluation of Bioprosthetic Heart Valves
Salvador Marquez MBA, Raphael T. Hon MS, Ajit P. Yoganathan PhD

The in-vitro hydrodynamic performance of commercially available bioprosthetic valves was tested according to ISO/FDA guidelines at two institutions. At various flow rates, flow and pressure measurements were recorded to obtain mean pressure gradients and effective orifice areas (EOAs). Considerable differences in pressure gradients were found among tested valves at each size. For a given size, differences of 200 to 400% were observed; in general, the valve models’ relative ranking in pressure drop were independent of size. The Carpentier-Edwards Perimount valve showed superior performance at all sizes tested. While the mean pressure gradients and EOAs reported by each institution were different for a given valve, the performance of valve models relative to each other was similar. This study with valves tested under identical conditions is a valuable comparative indicator for valve hemodynamic performance.