Replacing heart valves with man-made valves

Heart valves allow the heart to pump blood throughout the body efficiently. When they are deficient or no longer function, they can be replaced by man-made valves. Engineers and scientists have worked hard to develop valves that can withstand the heart’s regular pumping blood flow.

Man-made valves must meet certain standards with regards to inertia, strength, elasticity, and durability properties to ensure patient safety and comfort. All valve types must be durable.

Currently, mechanical vales are designed with materials such as stainless steel alloys, molybdenum alloys, carbon, silicone and polyester. Biological valves are made out of two types of tissues: human and animal.

Human tissue heart valves fall into two categories: homografts, which are valves that are transplanted from another human being, and autografts, which are valves that are transplanted from one position to another within the same person.

Animal tissue heart valves are often referred to as heterograft or xenograft valves. The valves are most often heart tissue recovered from animals. These valves can be stented i.e. with a support ring or stentless i.e. without a support ring.

Emerging technologies may provide other heart valve solutions, namely tissue engineering (which struggles with issues that will take years to be solved) or percutaneous treatment for inoperable patients.