In some valvular heart diseases repair where possible is preferable to valve replacement.
Valvuloplasty is the widening of a stenotic valve using a balloon catheter.
Types include:[citation needed] Commissurotomy of heart valves is called a valvulotomy.
[citation needed] A mitral balloon valvuloplasty enlarges the valve opening to allow greater oxygenated blood flow into the left ventricle, and since severe mitral regurgitation can be a major complication, degrees of stenosis, regurgitation, and valve anatomical features are taken into consideration before the procedure.
[3] The first two percutaneous ultrasound-guided fetal balloon valvuloplasties, a type of in utero surgery for severe aortic valve obstruction, were reported in 1991.