Structural Heart Disease

Structural heart diseases include any issues preventing normal cardiovascular function due to damage or alteration to the anatomical components of the heart. This is caused by aging, advanced atherosclerosis, calcification, tissue degeneration, congenital heart defects and heart failure. The most commonly treated areas are the heart valves, in particular the mitral and aortic valves. These can be replaced through open heart surgery or using cath lab-based transcatheter valves or repairs to eliminate regurgitation due to faulty valve leaflets. This includes transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). Other common procedures include left atrial appendage (LAA) occlusion and closing congenital holes in the heart, such as PFO and ASD. A growing area includes transcatheter mitral repair or replacement and transcatheter tricuspid valve repair and replacement.

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Early discharge after TAVR reduces readmissions

Early discharge following TAVR is associated with fewer readmissions and similar mortality over the following 30 days compared with a standard discharge strategy, according to a meta-analysis published in JACC: Cardiovascular Interventions.

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Pregnancy safe after arterial switch operation

Mothers or infants experienced no adverse cardiac events during 24 pregnancies completed by women who had undergone an arterial switch operation, according to a single-center, retrospective study published online Sept. 5 in JAMA Cardiology.

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Initial learning curve, annual case volume key in TAVR outcomes

A learning curve of at least 225 procedures is required for hospitals to perform transcatheter aortic valve replacements (TAVRs) with the lowest mortality rates, suggests a study of 16 centers participating in an international registry.

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Hospital discharge with oral antibiotics safe for stable endocarditis

Patients hospitalized with endocarditis can be safely switched from intravenous antibiotics to oral medication about halfway through the course of treatment, according to a randomized trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

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Patients with new-onset AFib at greatest risk for complications after TAVR

Cardiac patients who develop new-onset atrial fibrillation (AFib) after transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) are at a higher risk for complications like stroke, myocardial infarction and death than those whose AFib was established before the procedure, researchers report in the current online issue of JACC: Cardiovascular Interventions.

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Cardiac surgery offers no benefit over antibiotics alone in TAVR patients with infective endocarditis

Cardiac surgery doesn’t offer any benefit over medical treatment with antibiotics in transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) patients who have infective endocarditis (IE), researchers reported in the Journal of the American Heart Association this month.

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Ross procedure boosts survival for younger valve replacement candidates

Despite its relative rarity in clinical practice, the Ross procedure provides a survival benefit over mechanical aortic valve replacement in young and middle-aged patients, suggests a meta-analysis published in JAMA Cardiology and presented at the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress in Munich.

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Article highlights achievements of pediatric cardiology pioneer Helen Taussig

Investor’s Business Daily published a profile of Johns Hopkins physician Helen Brooke Taussig, MD, who overcame an initial rejection to medical school due to gender discrimination and went on to create the field of pediatric cardiology.

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