Measurement of the Tricuspid and the Mitral Valve in Adult Human Heart: A Cadaveric Study

Abstract

The human heart valve is an integral structure and the valvular heart disease is one of the most common disease of the heart. Such cardiac disease require repair of the valve and valve replacement surgery where the patient’s diseased valve is replaced by a prosthetic valve. The aim of this study was to measure the annular circumferences and diameters of tricuspid and mitral valves in cadavers. A morphometric study was conducted in Department of Anatomy at Nepal Medical College and Teaching Hospital where total 50 cadaveric hearts were taken up for the study. The tricuspid and the mitral valves were exposed by dissection method. Measurements were taken by using a thread and a digital vernier caliper and obtained data were analysed by using SPSS-16. The mean, frequency and standard deviation of circumferences and diameters of both tricuspid and the mitral valves were analysed and were found as (a) The mean annular circumference of tricuspid valve was 11.22 ± 0.20 cm (b) The mean diameter of tricuspid valve was 2.33 ± 0.04 cm. (c) The mean annular circumference of mitral valve was 9.22 ± 1.49 cm (d) the mean diameter of mitral valve was 2.01 ± 0.27 cm. There were few literatures available on the study of cadaveric heart valves in Nepal thus this study will provide a guideline to the clinicians, radiologists and also to cardiothoracic surgeons performing various valve surgeries to assess the prosthetic valve of appropriate size and to the anthropologists also to maintain a standardized data on cardiac valves as well.