Repairing the mitral valve is a much better option for patients when possible. Among other benefits, patients are spared the need to take expensive and risky blood thinners for the rest of their lives. But deciding to do a repair requires a heat-of-the-moment decision, since inspecting the valve during surgery is part of the process. The cardiac surgeons told me it’s possible to repair the valve in up to half the cases. But some of their colleagues take the one-hammer approach and replace them all.
