Barts and The London Heart Surgery Centre
Inside your heart there are four valves, two on each side, which open and close like a one-way door, to make sure that blood only flows through the heart one-way, in a forward direction. These valves also prevent the back-flow of blood.
The blood flows from the upper to the lower chambers, before being pumped out of the heart, to circulate through the lungs and around the body. The right and left sides of the heart work together. The right side collects blood from the body and pumps it to the lungs. The left side collects blood from the lungs for circulation around the body.
When the valves are damaged, worn or obstructed they do not open or close properly. This may either allow blood to flow back into the previous chamber, or if there is a narrowing, it stops blood being pumped outwards.
In both instances this means the heart has to work harder, which puts extra stress on your heart. If these conditions are left untreated, it can lead to the heart becoming enlarged or can progress to heart failure.
Heart valves may be faulty at birth (congenital heart disease) or damaged:
There are two types of heart valve disease:
The symptoms of heart valve disease vary according to which valve is damaged. Some people have very few symptoms whereas others experience shortness of breath, fatigue, chest pains/angina, dizziness and fainting.
At Barts and The London Heart Surgery Centre, we provide a range of treatments for patients with diseases affecting the heart valves. If the valve disease is severe and drug treatment alone is not effective, your doctor may recommend surgical treatment, which can greatly enhance your quality of life. The surgical options depend on your individual circumstances and medical history and will be discussed with you by your surgeon. In some cases we use minimal access surgery. This means the surgeons make a small incision in your chest, rather than opening up the entire chest wall. The benefits of this are faster recovery and reduced length of stays in hospital.
Our surgical treatments include:
The aortic valve is found on the left side of the heart, at the entrance to the aorta, the main artery leaving the heart.
At Barts and The London Heart Surgery Centre, our surgeons may use minimally invasive surgery to replace aortic valves. Some of the latest techniques and developments in valve surgery are used including minimal access surgery and stentless valves. This surgery improves the quality of life for many patients and stops the deterioration in heart function.
We are also embarking on a program of percutaneous aortic valve surgery in conjunction with our interventional cardiologists. This involves either inserting the valve through the left femoral artery or through a small thoracotomy.
This procedure can be used when patients may not be suitable for open heart surgery.
The mitral valve is found on the left side of the heart, between the atrium and the ventricle. Blood is pumped from the lungs into the left atrium, through the mitral valve and into the left ventricle. Depending on your individual circumstances, your surgeon will recommend surgery to replace or repair your mitral valve. In degenerative valve disease, we favour repairing and therefore preserving the native valve. This retains all the advantages of your natural valve. We have enormous experience in this and use the latest techniques, with excellent results.
At Barts and the London Heart Surgery Centre, we offer surgery to replace and repair the aortic valve and root. This is a complex procedure and wherever possible, our surgeons work to save the patient’s own aortic valve rather than replace it.
Endocarditis is a rare but serious condition causing an infection of the heart valve. In some cases, the infection is cause by poor dental health – and for this reason, we work closely with our colleagues in Barts and The London Dental Hospital to ensure our patients teeth and gums are healthy before they have their heart surgery.