Non-invasive assessment of prosthetic mitral paravalvular and intravalvular regurgitation.

The ability of certain non-invasive recording techniques to diagnose mitral paravalvular regurgitation and intravalvular regurgitation has been assessed. The data obtained from the 30 patients studied suggest that while the recognition of severe mitral paravalvular regurgitation is usually possible using phonocardiography and carotid arterial pressure recordings, mild cases may be difficult to diagnose. The most useful non-invasive measurement in this study was a reduced aortic closure to mitral valve opening interval (A2-OCMV) which occurred in association with