Natural history of the ascending aorta after aortic valve replacement: risk factor analysis for late aortic complications after aortic valve replacement

Background The purpose of this study was to clarify the natural history of the ascending aorta and to identify risk factors for late ascending aortic events after first isolated aortic valve replacement (AVR). Methods A total of 287 patients undergoing AVR were enrolled. The patients were categorized into two groups based on the diameter of the ascending aorta at the time of AVR, as determined by computed tomography: Group A ( n = 233) was defined as an ascending aortic diameter