Contents:

Solved and Unsolved Problems in Heart Valve Replacement.- The St. Jude Medical Prosthetic Heart Valve: Results from a Five-Year Multicenter Experience.- Choosing Between Mechanical and Tissue Valves for the Treatment of Valvular Heart Disease.- Preferred Use of Allografts in the Treatment of Valvular Heart Disease.- The Use of Mechanical Valves in the Treatment of Valvular Heart Disease.- The Choice Between Valve Preservation and Valve Replacement.- The Limits of Central Hemodynamic Improvement by Heart Valve Replacement.- Can the Hemodynamics of Prosthetic Heart Valves be Evaluated Sufficiently by In Vitro Tests?.- Is the Late Outcome of Heart Valve Replacement Influenced by the Hemodynamics of the Heart Valve Substitute?.- When are Hemodynamics Important for the Selection of a Prosthetic Heart Valve?.- Prosthetic Valve-related or Valve-induced Complications.- Non-invasive Follow-up of Prosthetic Heart Valves.- Hemolysis Following Cardiac Valve Replacement.- The Risk of Thromboembolism and Hemorrhage After Implantation of Heart Valve Prostheses.- Anticoagulation and Prosthetic Heart Valves.- Valve Malfunction and Heart Valve Replacement in Patients at Risk.- Incidence, Clinical Findings and Management of Prosthetic Valve Malfunction.- Valve Replacement in Children with Congenital Heart Disease.- Valve Replacement in Infancy and Childhood.