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New research found that the majority of elderly patients who had cardiac valve surgery were at risk for cognitive problems until six months after surgery. The research was conducted at the University of Rochester in the United States. According to the News18 report, researchers examined whether surgical procedures on two types of heart valves, the mitral or the aorta, were associated with better or worse outcomes.
The study was published in the Journal of American Geriatrics Society. The results showed that people undergoing aortic valve surgery were at greater risk of early cognitive decline in the first month after surgery than people undergoing mitral valve surgery.
However, within six months of surgery, the cognitive health of both groups appears to be largely returning to pre-surgery status.
According to the researchers, these findings highlight the cognitive vulnerability of this population, especially elderly people with aortic stenosis, the heart valve that controls the flow of blood from your heart to the rest of your body.
For the study, the team included hundreds of participants who had been tested before and after the surgery to determine their ability to remember, reflect and make decisions.
The researchers found that people experienced a cognitive decline from their pre-surgery condition in the first month after valvular surgery. In fact, patients undergoing mitral valve surgery experienced a slight decrease. But people who had aortic valve surgery had poorer cognitive function one month after surgery, although they tended to improve afterwards.
Posted: 14th October 2018 21:14
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