Collaborating with a Heart Valve Team

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Delayed referrals can have serious consequences for your patients with severe aortic stenosis (SAS), also known as heart valve failure. Educating patients about these potential outcomes may motivate them to proceed to the next step in their care.1-3

When you partner with a Heart Valve Team, you’re bringing in valuable reinforcements, leveraging additional expertise, and strengthening your patients’ network of care.4

Despite 10 years of therapeutic advances, an alarming number of patients remain untreated5-8

In a study of patients with symptomatic severe aortic stenosis (sSAS), it was shown that:

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Over half of sSAS patients did not receive AVR*5


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83% of these patients were never referred to a Heart Valve Team for evaluation5

*Based on a study at 2 leading academic medical centers, which assessed temporal AVR utilization trends among 10,795 patients.5

Patients who were followed in heart valve clinics experienced lower risk of sudden cardiac death and better overall survival than patients who were not followed in a heart valve clinic.2

Peer Perspectives:

How I collaborate with a Heart Valve Team

“When patients are referred earlier, the Heart Team is able to help decide the right time for treatment before their heart function is already critically affected. In the end, this may allow patients to avoid further complications, and then return to their normal quality of life.”

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Antonio H. Frangieh, MD
Interventional Cardiologist

DETERMINING WHO IS RIGHT FOR TAVR

Give your patients a better chance of survival. Recognizing the broadened eligibility of TAVR—which includes low-risk patients—can make a difference.

References: 1.Otto CM. Mind the gap: missed valve disease diagnosis. Heart. 2018;104(22):1810-1811. 2.Lancellotti P, Magne J, Dulgheru R, et al. Outcomes of patients with asymptomatic aortic stenosis followed up in heart valve clinics. JAMA Cardiol. 2018;3(11):1060-1068. 3.Redfors B, Pibarot P, Gillam LD, et al. Stress testing in asymptomatic aortic stenosis. Circulation. 2017;135(20):1956-1976. 4.Lindman BR, Lowenstern A. The alarm blares for undertreatment of aortic stenosis: how will we respond? J Am Coll Cardiol. 2022;79(9):878-881. 5.Li SX, Patel NK, Flannery LD, et al. Trends in utilization of aortic valve replacement for severe aortic stenosis. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2022;79(9):864-877. 6.Flannery L, Etiwy M, Camacho A, et al. Patient- and process-related contributors to the underuse of aortic valve replacement and subsequent mortality in ambulatory patients with severe aortic stenosis. J Am Heart Assoc. 2022;11(11):e025065. 7.Nkomo VT, Gardin JM, Skelton TN, et al. Burden of valvular heart diseases: a population-based study. Lancet. 2006;368(9540):1005-1011. 8.Lowenstern A, Sheridan P, Wang TY, et al. Sex disparities in patients with symptomatic severe aortic stenosis. Am Heart J. 2021;237:116-126.

Patients and/or clinicians quoted on this website have received compensation from Edwards Lifesciences.