Reader Response Draft #3

As introduced by Abbott (n.d.-a) in "Surgical heart valves”, the "Masters HP 15 mm Mitral Mechanical Heart Valves" is a mechanical heart valve suitable for treating newborns and babies. Abbott's mechanical valve is considered the gold standard and the world's most trusted mechanical heart valve (Abbott, n.d.-b), producing the world’s smallest 15 mm paediatric mechanical valve that is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration [FDA] (Office of the Commissioner, 2020). Its function includes a rotatable bi-leaflet valve designed for secure implantation in the mitral position (Abbott, n.d.-a) for patients with a diseased, damaged, or malfunctioning mitral heart valve. It has unique specifications and design features such as a tissue annulus diameter of only 15 mm (Abbott, n.d.-a). Furthermore, it has a unique design feature, which uses the "Pivot Guard Design'' which has low thrombogenicity at the forefront of the valve. With several enhanced features like the “Pivot Guard Design” and being the smallest mechanical valve with a “rotatable bi-leaflet valves” function, the Masters HP 15 mm Mitral Mechanical Heart Valve from Abbot is a revolutionary technology that can save newborns and babies with mitral valve problems.  
One important function of Abbott’s artificial heart valve is the rotatable bi-leaflet valve, which has proven low thrombogenicity and excellent patient outcomes through clinical trials (Abbott, n.d.-b). The valve leaflets open up to an 85-degree angle in systole (Abbott, n.d.-b): a process of contraction and ejection of the ventricular on both the left and right heart. The Systole stage of the cardiac cycle “begins when the mitral valve (tricuspid) closes, and concludes with the closure of the aortic valve (pulmonic)”, representing ventricular contraction,  forcing blood into the arteries (Pollock & Makaryus, 2020). The leaflets allow strong, uniform velocities of blood to flow within the hinge recess area, aiding in the washout of blood and preventing blood clots (Abbott, n.d.-b). As compared to caged ball or tilting-disc valves, bi-leaflet carry a lower risk of blood clots (Artificial Heart Valve, 2023). Therefore, the role of the bi-leaflet valves is crucially important for the patients to ensure that blood flows smoothly in the arteries. This will potentially reduce the risk of blood clots, a common complication with currently existing prosthetic valves (Fliesler, 2020).

Features-wise, the 15 mm mitral valve uses the rotatable bi-leaflet function, one of the three types of mechanical heart valves: caged ball, tilting-disc and bi-leaflet valves (Artificial Heart Valve, 2023). According to Artificial Heart Valve (2023), a bi-leaflet has a larger opening as compared to a caged ball or tilting-disc valve, which lowers the risk of blood clotting. Despite being the smallest 15mm mitral valve, blood is able to flow through the valve with the help of low thrombogenicity material of the leaflets, lowering the tendency of a material to generate blood clotting, when in contact with blood (Patravale et al., 2014). This reduces the tendency of blood clotting, which endangers mitral valve patients.

Furthermore, the “Pivot Guard Design” helps to shield the pivot mechanism from pannus ingrowth (Abbott, n.d.-b), a growth of abnormal tissue around a prosthetic heart valve, causing the heart valve to be dysfunctional (Ha et al., 2018). This design ensures a consistent 85-degree opening angle of the bi-leaflet valve, promoting minimized leaflet flutter and more laminar flow through the orifice (Abbott, n.d.-b) which helps reduce energy loss in blood flow. It minimizes viscous interactions between the adjacent layers of blood and the wall of the arteries (Klabunde, 2022). With the two features, it improves the flow of blood through the mechanical heart valve, lowering the chance of blood clotting with the selection of bi-leaflet valve with the “Pivot Guard Design”.
 
Being the smallest mechanical valve, the main drawback of mechanical heart valves is the side effects of lifetime consumption of blood thinner. According to Marcin (2022), long-term consumption of blood thinner includes the risk of bleeding, bleeding significantly from small cuts, skin rashes and hair loss. Aside from bleeding-related issues, consumption over a period of time might cause nausea and low blood count; causing fatigue, weakness, dizziness and shortness of breath (Klabunde, 2022) which possibly affects patients’ daily lives.
 
In conclusion, different types of artificial heart valves: mechanical, bioprosthetic and tissue valves, have their pros and cons. This report targets newborns and babies due to the increase in the number of children left untreated or delayed treatment, resulting in more loss of lives. The Masters HP 15 mm Mitral Mechanical Heart Valve from Abbott will help to treat newborns and babies, the only heart valve suitable to fit into their arteries.

 



Reference:

Abbott. (n.d.-a). Masters mitral and aortic mechanical valves | Abbott. Www.cardiovascular.abbott. https://www.cardiovascular.abbott/us/en/hcp/products/structural-heart/surgical-valve-solutions/masters-mechanical-valves.html

Abbott. (n.d.-b). Mechanical Heart Valves | Regent Valve and Master Series. Www.structuralheart.abbott. https://www.structuralheart.abbott/products/mechanical-heart-valve/regent-valve-masters-series-mechanical-heart-valve


Artificial heart valve. (2023, September 10). Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artificial_heart_valve#:~:text=Bileaflet%20valves


Fliesler, N. (2020, February 20). Breakthrough bileaflet heart valve could be the only one a child needs. Boston Children’s Answers. https://answers.childrenshospital.org/bileaflet-heart-valve/#:~:text=Potential%20for%20fewer%20blood%20clots

Ha, H., Koo, H. J., Huh, H. K., Kim, G. B., Kweon, J., Kim, N., Kim, Y.-H., Kang, J.-W., Lim, T.-H., Song, J.-K., Lee, S. J., & Yang, D. H. (2018). Effect of pannus formation on the prosthetic heart valve: In vitro demonstration using particle image velocimetry. PLOS ONE, 13(6), e0199792. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0199792


Klabunde, R. E. (n.d.). CV physiology | laminar flow. Cvphysiology.com. https://cvphysiology.com/hemodynamics/h006#:~:text=The%20orderly%20movement%20of%20adjacent

Klabunde, R. E. (2022, December 15). 7 things to know about taking blood thinners safely. Mercy. https://www.mercy.net/service/atrial-fibrillation/taking-blood-thinners-safely/#:~:text=Aside%20from%20bleeding%2Drelated%20issues


Marcin, A. (2022, December 2). What to know about long-term blood thinner use. Healthline. https://www.healthline.com/health/living-with-atrial-fibrillation/advancements/long-term-blood-thinner-use#:~:text=Blood%20thinners%20may%20cause%20side%20effects%20like%20nausea%2C%20bleeding%2C%20skin

Office of the Commissioner. (2020, March 24). FDA expands approval of replacement heart valve, smallest mechanical valve size approved in the world. FDA. https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-expands-approval-replacement-heart-valve-smallest-mechanical-valve-size-approved-world


Patravale, V., Dandekar, P., & Jain, R. (2014, March 27). Sciencedirect thrombogenicity . https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/thrombogenicity#:~:text=Thrombogenicity%20can%20be%20defined%20as

Pollock, J. D., & Makaryus, A. N. (2020). Physiology, Cardiac Cycle. PubMed; StatPearls Publishing. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK459327/#:~:text=Cardiac%20cycle%20events%20can%20be

Comments

Popular Posts