Quality of Life after Aortic Valve Replacement: A comparison between mechanical prostheses and pulmonary autografts

The purpose of this study was to compare quality of life between two types of patients; those that have undergone cardiac surgery for aortic valve replacement with mechanical prostheses and those that have received pulmonary autografts. The research tool utilized was the Short-Form (S-F 36) Quality of Life questionnaire. The conceptual framework was derived from the literature on research utilization in nursing practice. The research setting for this pilot study was an institution in the western United States that participates in the International Registry of the Ross Procedure. The sample size was determined by the Central Line Theorem and included 40 patients in each sample group. Inclusion criteria for participation in this study included patients who have either a mechanical prosthesis or a pulmonary autograft procedure for aortic valve disease, are greater than 21 years of age and less than 50 years of age, have a left ventricular ejection fraction of at least 50% and have not had any other concomitant procedures at the time of their surgery. Completed questionnaires were returned by 17 pulmonary autograft patients and by 2 mechanical valve patients. Physical and mental health sum scores from the SF-36 demonstrated excellent quality of life in the pulmonary autograft group. A small response rate in the mechanical valve group resulted in the inability to analyze the results in that sample