Old age was not a risk factor for excess mortality after AVR, whereas atrial fibrillation decreased relative survival substantially.

There were few factors strongly related to valve related morbidity. However, previous bleedings and previous thromboembolism were powerful risk factors for repeated events.

It is confirmed that early risks for death after heart valve surgery have decreased. This improvement was consistent after adjustment for risk factors.

The use of relative survival rates tended to modify the difference between subgroups compared with observed survival rates. Relative survival rates reduced the effect of concomitant CABG on survival, but enhanced for example the effect of aortic regurgitation. In patients > or = 70 years of age and patients submitted to aortic or mitral valve replacement with mild or no symptoms, the survival rate was similar for many years to that in the Swedish population at large.

No abstract