Echocardiographic evaluation of paravalvular aortic regurgitation of a patient with recurrent aortic valve replacements

Paravalvular regurgitation (PVR) is a serious complication after surgical valve replacement. Echocardiography is the gold standard technique to assess the severity of PVR with an integrated approach.A 48-year-old male underwent aortic valve replacement due to infective endocarditis (IE). During in-hospital cardiac rehabilitation after a redo surgery for a new IE three years later, an echo-free anterior space around the valve with several PVRs through transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) was identified. On transesophageal echocardiography (TOE) a double PVR (anterior and posterior) with abscessual cavity was detected. The patient’s conditions worsened within six months with hemodynamic instability: a massive PVR due to a large abscess cavity next to the right cusp was confirmed by TTE and TOE and a third surgery was carried out. On the third admission at our Rehabilitation Unit the echo features were normal. Patient did not report any cardiovascular symptoms at 1 year follow-up.