Early Investigation of Silver-coated Silzone^TM Heart Valves Prosthesis in 126 Patients
Johann Auer MD, Robert Berent MD, Choi-Keung Ng MD, Christian Punzengruber MD, Herbert Mayr MD, Elisabeth Lassnig MD, Christian Schwarz MD, Rudolf Puschmann MD, Peter Hartl MD, Bernd Eber MD

Permanent silver (Silzone^TM) coating of the sewing cuff of prosthetic heart valves (St. Jude Medical) may reduce the rate of prosthetic valve endocarditis. However, the incidence of paravalvular leaks and stroke in patients after implantation of Silzone-coated heart valve prostheses is largely unknown. These complications were analyzed among 126 consecutive patients after valve replacement with the Silzone-coated mechanical heart valves at our institution between February 1998 and December 1999. Total follow up was 137.4 patient-years, and 98.4% complete. The overall incidence of paravalvular leak graded more than trivial or mild was low (1.6%) in patients followed for a mean of 1.1 ± 0.5 years (range: 1-27 months) after valve replacement with Silzone-coated prostheses. No patient required reoperation due to paravalvular leak; moreover, the stroke rate (1.5%/year) was low in these patients.