TAVR: The Modern Option For Heart Valve Replacement

You’ve been diagnosed with a serious heart problem. One of the four valves that keep the blood pumping through your heart has thickened and calcified with age; it no longer opens and closes the way it should. Your cardiologist has said your aortic valve needs to be replaced. What does this mean? Will surgery be required and, if so, what options do you have?

Unlike years ago when open-heart surgery was the only choice, with extended time in the hospital followed by weeks of recovery, today many heart patients undergo valve replacement with a minimally invasive procedure called transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). TAVR is a preferred procedure, especially for older (70+) patients, notes Dr. Ramin Beygui, medical director of UCSF – Washington Cardiac Services.

“With TAVR, patients have a short, one- to two-day stay in the hospital and are able to return to normal activities within a few days,” Dr. Beygui explains. “One of the main benefits of TAVR particularly for older patients, is the elimination of open-heart surgery with the attendant heart-lung machine, and a reduction in recovery to a few days as compared to several weeks with the more invasive surgery.”

Dr. Beygui will explain the various options available now to treat heart valve failure at a 10 a.m. Feb. 7 online presentation, “TAVR: A Modern Option for Heart Valve Care.” Viewers can watch live on YouTube at YouTube.com/@Washington_Health. For those who miss the live presentation, the video will also be added to the Washington Health library of videos featuring health care experts.

Dr. Beygui will also discuss the variety of treatment options now available for the heart’s four valves. Depending on age, patient health issues and the extent of valve damage, other approaches may be considered. He will discuss how open-heart surgery has improved with shorter recovery times and lessened impact on patients.

Additionally, he will review follow-up studies of aortic valve replacement patients since the procedure was first instituted. These have concluded that TAVR is particularly appropriate and beneficial for older patients, especially those who have other health issues.

How does TAVR work? A new bioprosthetic valve, made from cow or porcine tissue, is placed in the heart, supplanting the existing valve. The insertion is made either through an artery in the groin or the chest area. In either instance, only a small incision is made to access the artery. The new valve is inserted and placed over the damaged valve and wedged into place.

The aortic valve must be replaced if it isn’t allowing the blood to come through it efficiently after the heart pumps. Dr. Beygui explains, “Aortic stenosis cannot be treated with medication; the condition requires some type of surgery to replace the valve. If the valve is not replaced, heart failure will occur.”