TAVR- Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement

A "sternotomy," in which the chest is surgically divided (opened) for the procedure, is typically required for valve replacement. All of the chest bones can remain in place when the TAVR or TAVI procedures are performed through extremely small incisions. There are two methods that can be used....

• TAVI (Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement) offers a less invasive alternative to surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR), particularly for patients with severe symptomatic aortic stenosis who are at high surgical risk due to age, comorbidities, or prior conditions. TAVI avoids open-heart surgery and is often preferred for patients deemed unsuitable for SAVR. Guidelines, like the 2017 recommendations, initially favored SAVR for low-risk patients, but TAVI is gaining acceptance even in lower-risk categories.