Cardiologists in the US Successfully Implant New Heart Valve

Patients with severe tricuspid regurgitation who have no other options available to them in the U.S. have hope with a new tricuspid valve replacement device.

The new transcatheter tricuspid valve replacement device LuX-Valve Plus has been successfully implanted for patients for whom traditional open-heart surgery is too risky. This is the first time Henry cardiologists at Henry Ford Hospital have used it for symptomatic tricuspid valve disease.

The tricuspid valve controls blood flow between the two right-sided chambers of the heart. When the tricuspid valve starts to fail, blood can leak backward into the top chamber of the heart, causing it to pump harder to move blood through the valve.

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‘First transcatheter tricuspid valve has been successfully implanted in an 80-year-old woman in the US with severe tricuspid regurgitation when no other options were left.’

In severe cases, it can cause pressure to rise in the top and bottom right-sided chambers of the heart, causing the chambers to expand and weaken over time, which leads to heart failure.

Tricuspid regurgitation is common among young adults in the US. Mild cases can also occur in about 15% of adults. About 1.6 million people in the U.S. have moderate or severe cases and some 70 million people have some form of the condition worldwide.

Common symptoms associated with Tricuspid regurgitation include fatigue, swelling of the legs, abdominal bloating, and shortness of breath. People who have been admitted for heart failure may also be candidates for the procedure.

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The AHA /ACC guidelines for treating valvular heart disease have been updated to include scope for less invasive heart valve replacement in some patients.

Hoping to leverage the experience with very sick patients who are out of options, researchers lead a clinical trial that can better evaluate the safety and efficacy of this novel valve in all patients.

Without the requirement of open-heart surgery, this minimally invasive tricuspid valve replacement procedure can be performed with a shorter procedural time, allowing for faster recovery, and the ability for patients to return home in a matter of days.

First Transcatheter TriValve System Implanted for Tricuspid Regurgitation

Pioneering this novel valve replacement approach, researchers successfully performed the first U.S. procedure for Norma O’Connor, an 80-year-old Detroit-area woman with severe tricuspid regurgitation, when it became evident that no other means would work. Traditional valve replacement was not medically viable for the patient, who is currently thriving after surgery.

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Transcatheter aortic valve replacement is a procedure that helps to repair the damaged heart valve. The individuals who underwent this procedure have experienced a significant increase in their quality of life.

In this procedure, a new valve is inserted through a catheter via a small incision in the patient’s neck without removing the old, damaged valve. Then, under the guidance of advanced real-time intraprocedural 3D imaging and 4D modeling, the new valve is placed inside the old valve, replacing the function of the diseased valve.

The new valve started to function immediately upon positioning in the heart, and the right side of the heart’s function started improving within minutes of a successful implant.

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Patients who have symptoms associated with a leaky tricuspid valve and have been told there’s nothing that can be done, or who want to find an alternative to surgery, should contact the Henry Ford Structural Heart team to explore options that may be available to them.

Source-Eurekalert