mechanical valve thrombosis; prosthetic valve thrombosis

Etiology

• insufficient anticoagulation (low INR)
• risk factors for thrombosis
  • oral contraceptives

Epidemiology

• annual risk 0.3-1.3%, higher with subtherapeutic INR

Clinical manifestations

• prosthetic aortic valve thrombosis:
  • muffled aortic valve click
  • combined systolic murmur & diastolic murmur may be present
• prosthetic mitral valve thrombosis:
  • soft S1
  • combined systolic murmur & diastolic murmur may be present
  • pulmonary edema, jugular venous distention, respiratory failure

Diagnostic procedures

• echocardiography

Complications

• mechanical valve thrombosis can interfere with prosthetic leaflet movement & result in acute heart failure
• embolism of the thrombus may occur leading to embolic stroke or infarcts in other end-organs

More general terms

• thrombosis