Surgical technique for aortic regurgitation attributable to Behcet's disease: modified aortic valve replacement with reinforcement of the aortic wall.

Aortic regurgitation is a severe cardiovascular complication of Behcet's disease, resulting in high mortality rates within the Asian population. Standard surgical interventions have resulted in poor results in the long term. We herein report on a modified aortic valve replacement technique coupled with reinforcement of the aortic wall. During this procedure, Teflon felts and continuous mattress stitches were used to reinforce the aortic wall in order to prevent prosthetic valve detachment and formation of an aortic pseudoaneurysm. Postoperative examinations revealed that this procedure had satisfactory mid-term results.