[Aortic valve replacement for rheumatoid aortic valve regurgitation]

Valve replacement for aortic regurgitation in patient with rheumatoid arthritis was rare in Japan. We report a successful case in which aortic regurgitation necessitated aortic valve replacement. A 62-year-old woman was admitted for shortness of breath, chest pain and progressive edema. She had been treated for rheumatoid arthritis for more than ten years using steroids. The aortic valve was successfully replaced by a prosthetic mechanical valve. The histopathological examination of the excised aortic valve demonstrated rheumatic nodules in the right- and non-coronary cusp. It was supported that these changes caused shrinkage of cusp and resulted in aortic regurgitation. This patient was discharged on the 20th postoperative day. There was no evidence of detachment of the prosthetic valve.