Structural & Congenital Heart Disease

An expert consensus statement published by the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI) offers guidance for the safe and effective use of patent foramen ovale (PFO) closure devices to prevent recurrent stroke.

Patients with severe but asymptomatic aortic stenosis have better survival two and three years later if an aortic valve replacement (AVR) is initially recommended instead of a “watchful waiting” approach, according to a single-center study published in The Annals of Thoracic Surgery.

NEW ORLEANS — Patients who received the MitraClip device to treat heart failure with secondary mitral regurgitation showed significant and lasting improvements on a quality-of-life assessment compared to people treated with optimal medical therapy alone, according to a substudy of the COAPT trial presented at the American College of Cardiology’s scientific sessions.

NEW ORLEANS — Two trials evaluating transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) in low-risk patients haven’t just shifted the TAVR versus surgical AVR discussion. They’ve completely flipped it, said experts here at the American College of Cardiology’s scientific sessions.

Patients who received aortic valve repair or replacement (AVR) based on Class II indications fared better than those who underwent surgery for Class I triggers in a single-center study, suggesting earlier intervention may be warranted in asymptomatic individuals with chronic aortic regurgitation.

The FDA has expanded the indication for the MitraClip to include heart failure patients with moderate-to-severe secondary mitral regurgitation, the agency announced March 14. Abbott’s transcatheter mitral valve repair device was approved in 2013, but only for primary mitral regurgitation.

The American College of Cardiology (ACC) will begin offering a new Transcatheter Valve Certification to U.S. hospitals in mid-2019, the College announced March 13.

Edwards Lifesciences has invested $35 million for an exclusive right to acquire Corvia Medical, which is engaged in a U.S. pivotal trial for its InterAtrial Shunt Device (IASD) to treat heart failure.

Patients who remain in the hospital for longer than three days following transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) are at a 45 percent increased risk of death within one year versus those discharged sooner after the procedure, a new analysis found.

The global market for transcatheter treatment of the mitral and aortic valves is expected to double over the next five years, according to a new report from BCC Research. The industry analysis projects an increase from $4 billion in 2018 to $8 billion in 2023, at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 14.8 percent.

ACC.19 will feature 36 late-breaking clinical trials and clinical research studies, starting with the Apple Heart Study’s findings on the ability of a smartwatch to help identify atrial fibrillation. That question is just one of many the conference will address, says ACC.19 Program Chair Andrew Kates, MD, professor of medicine and director of the cardiology fellowship program at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. During a conversation with Cardiovascular Business, Kates predicted trial highlights and previewed some ACC.19 program innovations. 

More than two years after a major New England Journal of Medicine study declared arthritis drug Celebrex safe for use in heart patients, new research published in JACC: Basic to Translational Science Feb. 22 suggests the drug might actually raise users’ risk for heart valve calcification.