Currently the hospital mortality (death within 30 days of the operation)
for single valve replacement is around 4%. Multiple valve replacement
procedures carry a slightly higher risk than single valve procedures. There
is also an increased risk if the patient requires coronary artery surgery in
addition to the valve procedure.
It may be helpful to put these risk percentages in perspective. They
represent a risk not significantly different than for a major abdominal
operation. Around 5,000 patients have valve replacement procedures in the
UK each year.