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.

Edwards Lifesciences loses TAVR leader to robotics firm, announces replacement
The change comes at a momentous time for the company's TAVR portfolio, which made history in May by receiving the very first FDA approval for treating asymptomatic severe AS.
Q&A: What Medicare covering TriClip means for heart patients with leaky tricuspid valves
The tricuspid valve has been at the center of several key policy shifts in recent years. In fact, Medicare now covers both T-TEER and TTVR when performed with FDA-approved devices. We spoke to interventional cardiologist Jason H. Rogers, MD, to learn more about how this momentum has impacted patient care.
How pairing SAVR with additional heart surgeries affects mortality risk
When older patients undergo SAVR with concomitant procedures, it increases their short- and long-term risks of mortality. Should this influence care teams to consider more transcatheter treatments?
New device could make it easier than ever for cardiologists to perform BASILICA before TAVR
Toby Rogers, MD, PhD, noted that BASILICA is a fairly complex procedure. Using this advanced technology, however, could make it easier to perform and improve patient access.
Stroke risk after TAVR still much higher for female patients
Women are associated with a significantly higher rate of in-hospital disabling strokes than men, according to a new study of nearly 380,000 TAVR patients. What can cardiologists do to help limit these complications?

Trial halted amid safety concerns for rivaroxaban after TAVR

The GALILEO trial has been stopped after an early look at outcomes revealed rivaroxaban was associated with greater odds of thromboembolic events, all-cause death and bleeding events compared to antiplatelet therapy following transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR).

Study IDs predictors of mortality in asymptomatic aortic stenosis

Asymptomatic patients with severe aortic stenosis are at greater risk of all-cause and cardiovascular mortality if they have higher peak aortic jet velocities or left ventricular ejection fractions (LVEFs) below 60 percent, researchers reported Oct. 3 in JAMA Cardiology.

Gender gap observed in early TAVI era closing

The considerable survival advantage observed in female patients undergoing transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) during the procedure’s earlier years has diminished in the contemporary TAVI era, according to research out of Petah Tikva, Israel, meaning men and women are seeing similar outcomes post-procedure.

TAVR, SAVR linked to equal survival in patients at intermediate surgical risk

Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) was easily the treatment of choice in German patients with severe stenosis at intermediate surgical risk from 2012 to 2014, according to a registry study, with both TAVR and surgical AVR (SAVR) carrying a 3.6 percent risk of in-hospital mortality.

Emergency department visits for CHD becoming safer but more costly

Emergency department visits for children with congenital heart disease (CHD) are getting more expensive over time but mortality rates are improving, according to an analysis of more than 420,000 CHD-related trips to the ED over a nine-year period.

Edwards Lifesciences' Philanthropy Exceeds Every Heartbeat Matters Goal To Impact One Million Underserved People Ahead Of Schedule

IRVINE, Calif., Sept. 26, 2018 — Edwards Lifesciences Corporation (NYSE: EW), the global leader in patient-focused innovations for structural heart disease and critical care monitoring, announced at a 60th anniversary educational event that the Every Heartbeat Matters initiative has exceeded the goal to impact the global burden of heart valve disease by supporting the education, screening and treatment of one million underserved people by 2020.

TCT.18: TAVR outcomes not swayed by valve type, anesthesia approach

SAN DIEGO — General and local anesthesia are comparably safe and effective during transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) procedures, according to the first randomized trial to compare the two approaches.

TCT.18: COAPT draws superlatives, raises questions about replicating MitraClip’s benefits

Compared to heart failure patients with severe secondary mitral regurgitation who were treated with guideline-directed medical therapy alone, those randomized to a MitraClip procedure plus optimal medical therapy demonstrated relative reductions of 47 percent for heart failure hospitalizations and 38 percent for mortality at two years of follow-up.

Structural Heart Disease

Edwards Lifesciences loses TAVR leader to robotics firm, announces replacement

Q&A: What Medicare covering TriClip means for heart patients with leaky tricuspid valves

How pairing SAVR with additional heart surgeries affects mortality risk

New device could make it easier than ever for cardiologists to perform BASILICA before TAVR

Stroke risk after TAVR still much higher for female patients