There is not agreement among the top structural heart experts if CT is required for left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO), but a Henry Ford Hospital study shows it can improve outcomes.

A decade ago, when TAVR was first cleared by the FDA, surgeons had concern about losing business. But unexpectedly, TAVR has helped also gain heart surgery cases. 

The FDA said cardiovascular devices make up the largest number of technologies accepted into the Breakthrough Devices Program, and several are on the list of the first 50 in the program to gain market clearance.

Brijeshwar Maini, MD, structural heart cardiologist, national and Florida medical director of cardiology, Tenant Health, explains what hospitals need to build a structural heart program and develop a heart-team care collaboration approach.

Researchers from Cleveland Clinic reviewed data from more than 400 patients, presenting their findings in the American Journal of Cardiology.

During valve-in-valve TMVR, patients are treated with conscious sedation or monitored anesthesia care instead of general anesthesia. This new analysis confirms that the change does not impact patient outcomes, but it was linked to a shorter length of stay.

Treating subclinical leaflet thrombosis after TAVR has been an ongoing challenge for structural heart clinicians, but recent research has gone a long way toward improving our understanding of this important topic. 

In-hospital mortality was especially high among TAVR patients presenting with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, according to a new analysis.