Wavelet analysis of bileaflet mechanical valve sounds.

It has been reported that asynchronous leaflet closure in a bileaflet mechanical valve causes a split in the valve closing sound. We have previously reported that the continuous wavelet transform (CWT) with the Morlet wavelet as modified by Ishikawa (the Morlet wavelet) is the most suitable method among the CWTs for detecting a split in the bileaflet mechanical valve sound because this method can detect the highest frequency signal among the CWT methods with higher time resolution. This is the first article which discusses the acoustic properties of five types of bileaflet valves using the Morlet CWT. Similar behavior of the valve sound split intervals with wide fluctuations over consecutive heartbeats was found to be the common finding for all the bileaflet valves. This result suggests that fluctuation of the split interval proves the normal movement of both leaflets without movement disturbance. The mean differences in the split interval between these bileaflet valves were statistically significant, and the wavelet coefficients of the CWT showed characteristic scalographic patterns, such as a teardrop shape or a triangle beneath the split. However, these two findings gave no valuable information for the diagnosis of bileaflet valve malfunction. A split in the valve closing sound with a fluctuating interval was the common finding in these five normally functioning bileaflet valves, and careful observation of the split's behavior may be a key to diagnosis of bileaflet valve malfunction.