OBJECTIVES
Surgical treatment of infective endocarditis (IE) remains a challenge. The Ross procedure offers the benefit of a living substitute in the aortic position but it is a more complex operation which may lead to increased operative risk. The aim of this study was to assess the safety and late outcomes of the Ross procedure for the treatment of active IE.
METHODS
From 2000 to 2019, a total of 31 consecutive patients underwent a Ross procedure to treat active IE (mean age 43 ± 12 years, 84% male). All patients were followed up prospectively. Four patients (13%) were intravenous (IV) drug users and 6 patients (19%) had prosthetic IE. The most common infective organism was Streptococcus (58%). Median follow-up was 3.5 (0.9–4.5) years and 100% complete.
RESULTS
There were no in-hospital deaths. One patient suffered a postoperative stroke (3%) and 1 patient (3%) required reintervention for bleeding. Three patients had a new occurrence endocarditis: 2 patients were limited to the pulmonary homograft and successfully managed with IV antibiotics, whereas 1 IV drug user patient developed concomitant autograft and homograft endocarditis. Overall, cumulative incidence of IE recurrence was 13 ± 8% at 8 years. The cumulative incidence for autograft endocarditis was 5 ± 4% at 8 years. Two patients (6%) died during follow-up, both from drug overdoses. At 8 years, actuarial survival was 88 ± 8%.
CONCLUSIONS
In selected patients with IE, the Ross procedure is a safe and reasonable alternative with good mid-term outcomes. Freedom from recurrent infection on the pulmonary autograft is excellent, labelporting the notion that a living valve in the aortic position provides good resistance to infection. Nevertheless, in IV drug user patients, pulmonary homograft endocarditis remains a challenge. Continued follow-up is needed to ascertain the long-term benefits of this approach.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.