LHSC announces a cardiac surgery world first (Canada)

"Doctors at London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) are the first in the world to use a new implantable surgical device that promises to revolutionize aortic valve bypass surgery. On November 3, 2010, LHSC's cardiac surgery team led by Drs. Bob Kiaii and Linrui Guo successfully performed an aortic valve bypass using a specialized Aortic Valve Bypass (AVB) device. This was done to treat a patient with critical aortic stenosis who could not have conventional treatments due to his underlying high risk condition. 'There were no options left for the patient. He was at a point where no more than 30% of his blood was being pumped out of his heart. Not only was he severely fatigued and weakened, but he was at a high risk for having a stroke,' explains Dr. Kiaii, chair/chief of the cardiac surgery team"

New heart valve procedure promising for high-risk patient (Canada)

"Cardiologists have unveiled a new heart valve procedure for patients considered too sick, old or frail to survive a tough operation that splits their chests open. The procedure was revealed Monday at Canadian Cardiovascular Congress taking place in Montreal. Normally, half such high-risk patients - age 80 and over - would die within a year because their diseased aortic valves have worn out and they cannot have open-heart surgery. But placing a new valve through an artery in the leg has yielded dramatic results, opening doors to what experts suggest will become a new gold standard of care for aging boomer hearts in the next decade. Not only are these patients walking about the very same day of their transcatheter valve-replacement procedure, but most go home within three to four days, Australian interventional cardiologist Ronen Gurvitch said Monday after his presentation" - Montreal Gazette

Bug killed doctor by eating through his artificial heart valve (UK)

A clinical psychologist died after bacteria ate a hole in an artificial valve fitted to his heart and stopped it working. Dr Keith Jones died of a sudden heart attack at Royal Derby Hospital in October last year. A postmortem examination revealed part of the valve, fitted 12 months previously, had been destroyed by the bacteria, called staph aureus. This stopped blood being pumped around his body. Giving evidence at an inquest, Dr Ivan Robinson, who conducted the examination, said: "I think the sudden catastrophic nature of Mr Jones' death was because the valve gave way. "The bacteria destroyed the substance of the valve. "This meant the heart was not pumping effectively. "There was a build-up of blood behind the left ventricle (one of four chambers of the heart)." Derby and South Derbyshire Coroner's Court heard that Dr Jones, 57, from Turnditch, fell ill with endocarditis – an inflammation of the inner layer of the heart – in 2007

Deaths prompt heart patient alert (UK)

A hospital has recalled 14 people who have had heart valve surgery after three patients died from an infection. Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust contacted the patients, who all underwent the procedure at the Trent Cardiac Centre at the City Hospital. A trust spokesman said the three who died were among eight patients who had the surgery who went on to develop the skin infection staphylococcal. He said the other 14 were at low risk but had been recalled as a precaution - BBC

Fast, simple treatment option for patients too sick for open-heart surgery?

"An innovative device that acts like a belt to reshape an enlarged, leaky heart valve is providing a minimally invasive treatment option for patients who are too sick for open-heart surgery. According to a Late-Breaking Clinical Trial presented May 7 at the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI) 32nd Annual Scientific Sessions, the CARILLON Mitral Contour System safely treated leaky mitral valves even in patients with moderate-to-severe heart failure, and was effective in reducing the backward flow of blood from the left ventricle to the left atrium." ScienceDaily

Keyhole for old artificial valves (UK)

" Doctors in the UK say they have for the first time used keyhole surgery to replace an old prosthetic heart valve. The technique has already provided new valves for those too ill for open heart surgery, but this is the first time a replacement has itself been replaced. The procedure means elderly patients effectively have a second roll of the dice if their replacement valve fails. It was assumed that most would die before needing a new one, but increased life-expectancy has altered that view. Doctors at King's College Hospital in London carried out the surgery on a 78-year-old man whose first artificial valve was inserted during open heart surgery in 2002. This began to fail last year, causing breathlessness and fainting" - BBC

Diseased heart valve replaced through small chest incision (USA)

"When 91-year-old Irvin Lafferty was diagnosed with severe blockage of his heart valve - hardening that is formally known as aortic valve stenosis - open-heart surgery was out of the question. He'd already survived quadruple bypass while in his 50s, and having lived almost a century, Lafferty wasn't a good candidate for heart surgery for many reasons. His local cardiologist referred him to surgical and interventional specialists at Chicago's Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute of Northwestern Memorial Hospital. And, on January 21, 2009, Lafferty became the first patient in Illinois to receive a prosthetic heart valve through a procedure known as transapical transcatheter aortic valve implantation, which combines catheterization technology and traditional surgery, allowing doctors to implant a new heart valve in place of Lafferty's diseased valve while his heart remained beating" - Northwestern Memorial Hospital

Danish discovery could help cardiac patients

"The researchers at the Engineering College of Aarhus and Aarhus University Hospital have developed an intelligent ring-shaped component that could make live easier for cardiac patients. The component apparently enables the device to re-create the heart's pumping function. This makes it possible for patients with faulty heart valves to avoid the repeated operations which are necessary today" - BioTech Sweden