Systemic embolism is a major complication of mitral stenosis which is usually related to a presence of left atrial thrombus. Percutaneous balloon mitral valvuloplasty (PBMV) was previously reported to reduce the incidence of this complication. However, the mechanisms of this beneficial procedure was under
investigated. The aim of this study was to investigate the changes in coagulation activity, platelet activity and endocardial function in 29 patients with mitral stenosis after successful PBMV. All subjects had good left ventricular systolic function and 48.3% had atrial fibrillation. There was a significant reduction in thrombin-antithrombin complex (TAT) after a successful procedure and the level of thrombomodulin was
also significantly higher one month after successful procedure. However, the level of platelet factor 4 (PF4) and beta-thromboglobulin (-TG) were increased after this procedure but not achieved the statistical significance. In conclusion, successful PBMV can reduce the prethrombotic state in patients with mitral stenosis. In addition, it may improve endocardial function of the left atrium in those without atrial fibrillation.

Keywords : Mitral stenosis, Balloon mitral valvuloplasty, Left atrial thrombus