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Mitral annuloplasty with biodegradable ring for infective endocarditis: a new tool for the surgeon for valve repair in childhood

^a Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Gaziantep University, School of Medicine, Ulus mah 37 nolu sokak, Cumhuriyet Apt. No:11/5, Sehitkamil Gaziantep, Turkey
^b Department of Pediatric Cardiology, Gaziantep University, School of Medicine, Gaziantep, Turkey

*Corresponding author. Tel./fax: +90 342 360 11 26.

E-mail address: hakki{at}kazaz.info (H. Kazaz).

The incidence of bacterial endocarditis and valvular involvement is rare in the childhood period. If the patient is unresponsive to medical treatment and some complications occur, early surgical treatment is indicated. Debridement of vegetation combined with valve repair techniques sparing the native valve is the ideal surgical procedure instead of replacement, especially for children. Annuloplasty is the key step during valve repair procedures. On the other hand, absence of appropriate sized annuloplasty rings on the market for this group of patients is the main problem. Nondegradable annuloplasty rings might lead to stenosis as the child grows. Thus, biodegradable tissue engineered materials are new solutions for such patients since the fibrous tissue induced by implanted ring grows with time. We describe a pediatric patient with Brucella endocarditis at the mitral position who was treated successfully with valve repair using a biodegradable annuloplasty ring (Kalangos^® Biodegradable Ring).

Key Words: Brucella; Endocarditis; Mitral; Bioring