Baroness Undergoes Heart Operation

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 32233, 27 February 1970, Page 22

Baroness Undergoes Heart Operation

(New Zealand Press Association) AUCKLAND, February 26. Baroness de Rothschild yesterday underwent a successful heart-valve repair operation at Mater Misericordiae Hospital in Auckland. Her condition today was satisfactory.

The Baroness suffered from.i a defect of the mitral valve i and was referred to Auckland I i for the operation because of! the experience of Auckland surgeons in such operations': and also because it was not! known if a valve transplant ] ; was needed. i Had a valve transplant been necessary, her Auckland sur- : geon could have replaced it' through a homograft opera-]; tion developed here about two ' years ago. This operation involves replacement of the defective 1 mitral valve with a human : I pulmonary valve. About 80

,of these operations had been done in Auckland with “gratifying results,” a senior Auck--1 land surgeon said today. However, it was not necessary to replace the valve in ! the operation. The valve was ! ideally suited to the repair operation. He said it was unlikely that she could have had the operation done elsewhere because not many people would do it. The repair operation required a lot of experience and Auckland surgeons had had this. Baroness de Rothschild will stay in hospital for two to three weeks.