Heart valves help us maintain proper direction of blood flow in and out of each chamber. A human heart has four valves: aortic, mitral, tricuspid, and pulmonary; and four chambers: left atrium, left ventricle, right atrium, and right ventricle.

Causes of heart valve diseases include congenital valve defects, calcification, tumor, and valve degeneration, and can happen to all four valves. The purpose of this study is to explore bio-scaffold valves and determine whether they can facilitate robust valvular hydrodynamic functions. Additionally, the bio-scaffold material allows native cell infiltration to further trigger regenerative properties.

Vivitro pulse duplicator (Vivitro Labs, Inc., Victoria, BC, Canada) is a system that simulates the left side of the heart. It consists of a ventricular chamber, an atrium, and an aortic load assembly. The system allows placement of two valves simultaneously. Three pressure transducers are placed in the aortic, ventricular, and atrial positions, and a flow probe is attached on either the mitral or the aortic locations.

The first video shows a cylindrical PSIS (porcine small intestinal submucosa) valve placed in the aortic position in the Vivitro system. The three posts are 120 degrees apart, creating a 3-leaflet geometry as pulsatile flow moves through the valve. The second video is a cylindrical PSIS valve in the mitral position in the Vivitro system. The two posts are 150 degrees apart, simulating the anterior and posterior leaflets.