Comparison of Hemodynamic Performance of Medtronic Hall 21 mm versus St. Jude Medical 23 mm Prostheses in Pigs
Peter Kleine MD, Ulf Abdel-Rahman MD, Armin A. Klesius MD, Mirella Scherer MD, Andreas Simon MD, Anton Moritz MD

The ideal prosthesis for aortic valve replacement in the relatively small annulus remains controversial and has yet to be defined. This study compared the hemodynamics of 21 mm Medtronic Hall (MH) and 23 mm St. Jude Medical (SJM) valves in an animal model. A rotation device holding either a MH or SJM aortic valve was implanted into eight pigs. Transvalvular pressure gradients and ventricular dimensions were then measured in different orientations. In the optimum orientation, pressure gradients of the MH valve corresponded to those obtained with the SJM valve, whereas in the worst orientation the MH valve showed a tendency to higher gradients. Thus, implantation of the MH valve might be an alternative to root enlargement and implantation of a larger SJM valve in patients with a small aortic annulus.