Adult Echocardiography Practice Exam

A bioprosthetic porcine valve in the aortic valve position is classified as which type of graft?

1. Heterograft

2. Homograft

3. Autograft

4. Composite graft

The correct answer is: Heterograft

A bioprosthetic porcine valve is classified as a heterograft because it is derived from a different species—specifically, a pig. Heterografts, or xenografts, are tissues or organs taken from one species and transplanted into another. In this case, using porcine tissue for the aortic valve positions it as a heterograft. Homografts involve tissue transplanted between individuals of the same species, such as human to human, and would not apply here since the source is porcine. Autografts refer to tissue that is transplanted from one part of the body to another in the same individual, which is also not relevant for a porcine valve. Composite grafts are structures that combine different types of tissues, often involving a synthetic component alongside biological tissue, but this does not describe a bioprosthetic valve that is solely from porcine origin. Thus, the classification of the bioprosthetic porcine valve is accurately recognized as a heterograft.