Isner J M, Samuels D A, Slovenkai G A, Halaburka K R, Hougen T J, Desnoyers M R, Fields C D, Salem D N
Department of Pathology, Tufts University School of Medicine, New England Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts.
Ann Intern Med. 1988 Mar;108(3):377-80. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-108-3-377.
Balloon valvuloplasty has been shown to acutely reduce the hemodynamic and symptomatic severity of calcific aortic stenosis. The mechanism by which this improvement is accomplished is not known. At necropsy, three patients who died after hemodynamically successful aortic balloon valvuloplasty were found to have aortic valve calcific deposits fractured at one or more sites. These findings suggest that fracture of leaflet calcium represents the basis for successful aortic balloon valvuloplasty.
