Biological or Mechanical Prostheses for Isolated Aortic Valve Replacement in Patients Aged 50–65 Years: The ANDALVALVE Study

Rodríguez-Caulo and colleagues report a retrospective multicenter study on almost 1,500 patients aged 50-65 who underwent aortic valve replacement with mechanical or biological prosthesis. The mean length of follow-up was 8 years. There was no significant difference in survival between the valve types. There was a higher rate of major bleeding in patients with mechanical prosthesis; however, reoperation was more frequent among those with a biological prosthesis. The authors conclude that a bioprosthesis in patients of age 55 years and older is a reasonable choice.