Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR)
Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR)
Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) is a minimally invasive procedure to replace a narrowed aortic valve that fails to open properly (aortic stenosis).
- The TAVR procedure is appropriate for treating severe aortic stenosis.
- Aortic stenosis is a narrowing of the valve’s opening making blood flow out of the heart more difficult.
- Fatigue, weakness, and shortness of breath are the most common symptoms of advancing aortic stenosis. Dizziness, light-headedness, and fainting can also be related to a stenotic aortic valve.
- The TAVR procedure is typically reserved for people who can't undergo open-heart surgery or for people for whom surgery presents too many risks due to significant medical or surgical history, frailty, or poor rehabilitation potential.
- The TAVR procedure is typically done via an artery in the leg (femoral artery). However, if this site is not ideal, physicians can also place the tissue valve using an artery near the collar bone or the chest.
- After the TAVR procedure, patients are typically discharged within 2 to 4 days.
- TAVR has been commercially available in Europe since 2007 and in the United States since 2011.