Malaise and fatigue following mitral valve repair: case report

Mitral valve regurgitation is the second most common valvular heart disease. In primary, degenerative mitral regurgitation (MR), valve repair is the preferred treatment option.

We present a case of a 73-year-old man who was admitted to our cardiology department with progressively worsening shortness of breath (New York Heart Association-Classification IV) and fatigue 2 months after surgical mitral valve repair for MR. Transthoracic and transoesophageal echocardiography showed a remaining severe MR and mitral valve stenosis II°. Laboratory results showed an extra-corpuscular, mechanical, and haemolytic anaemia. After exclusion of other causes of haemolytic anaemia and the lack of clinical and laboratory improvement, the patient underwent valve replacement with a biological valve. Haemolysis parameter normalized and the clinical status improved.

Although haemolysis after mechanical prosthetic mitral valve replacement is frequently recognized, haemolytic anaemia after mitral valve reconstruction is still an underestimated complication, and there are only a small number of reported cases. This case demonstrates the clinical diagnostic steps for excluding other causes of haemolytic anaemia after mitral valve repair in patients with a history of heart surgery.