Currently-used mechanical and biological heart valve prostheses
have several disadvantages. Mechanical prostheses, based on
carbon, metallic and polymeric components, require permanent
anticoagulation treatment, and their usage often leads to adverse
reactions, e.g. thromboembolic complications and endocarditis.
Xenogenous and allogenous biological prostheses are associated
with immune reaction, thrombosis and degeneration, and thus
they have a high rate of reoperation. Biological prostheses of
autologous origin, such as pulmonary autografts, often burden
the patient with a complicated surgery and the risk of
reoperation. Therefore, efforts are being made to prepare
bioartificial heart valves with an autologous biological component
by methods of tissue engineering. They should be biocompatible,
durable, endowed with appropriate mechanical properties and
able to grow with a child. For this purpose, scaffolds composed
of synthetic materials, such as poly(lactic acid),
poly(caprolactone), poly(4-hydroxybutyrate), hydrogels or natural
polymers, e.g. collagen, elastin, fibrin or hyaluronic acid, have
been seeded with autologous differentiated, progenitor or stem
cells. Promising results have been obtained with nanostructured
scaffolds, and also with cultivation in special dynamic bioreactors
prior to implantation of the bioartificial grafts into an animal
organism.