Atlanta (Sept. 30, 2021) – Clinicians at Piedmont Heart Institute at Piedmont Atlanta Hospital performed the first HighLife Trans-septal Mitral Valve Replacement (TSMVR) in the United States on July 13, 2021, as part of an early feasibility trial.
This innovative technique is used to treat patients with mitral valve insufficiency or regurgitation using a minimally invasive, transcatheter technique and offers patients the possibility of an effective treatment with a quicker recovery compared to cardiac surgery.
“HighLife is exciting as it offers fully percutaneous mitral valve replacement via a very controlled, hemodynamically stable and intuitive procedure. It resulted in a perfect outcome with complete elimination of mitral regurgitation. The patient did very well and was discharged home on Day Four and continues to do well at 30 days,” said Pradeep K. Yadav, M.D., Structural Interventional Cardiologist at the Marcus Heart Valve Center.
The HighLife trans-septal MVR system is made of two implants, a valve and a ring, implanted between the left atrium and the left ventricle of the heart through small accesses in the groin. The procedure leaves the patient’s chest unopened and is done on a beating heart guided by an echocardiogram.
“There remains a great need in the Southeast to provide patients with superlative care in valve therapies. The commitment of Piedmont Heart Institute and Piedmont Healthcare to provide this care remains unwavering, allowing our physicians the environment to provide this state-of-the-art care to our patients,” said Vinod H. Thourani, M.D., Chief of Cardiovascular Surgery for Piedmont Healthcare and Marcus Heart Valve Center.
Piedmont Heart Institute provides patients with the best treatments for mitral valve diseases, and TMVR is one of the most advanced techniques in today’s cardiology practice. The procedure was led by Pradeep Yadav, M.D., Vivek Rajagopal, M.D., interventional cardiologists, and Dr. Vinod Thourani, a cardiac surgeon. Piedmont Atlanta ranks among the few hospitals in the world that offer TMVR procedures to their patients.
The procedure was performed in the newly constructed Marcus Tower at Piedmont Atlanta. The collaborative team effort involved Piedmont structural interventionalists, cardiac surgeons, imaging cardiologists, cardiac catheterization laboratory staff, cardiovascular research staff, Piedmont Heart’s multimedia team, and HighLife Medical’s Therapy Development team.