Consumer Health

Following FDA Approval, Englewood Health Expands Use of Transcatheter Valve Replacement for Treating Aortic Stenosis

Englewood Health TAVR team
Members of the Englewood Health TAVR team. Pictured from left to right: Dr. Richard Goldweit, Dr. Joseph DeGregorio, Dr. Aron Schwarcz, Dr. Michael Benz, Dr. Ramin Hastings, Dr. Michael Wilderman, Dr. Lance Kovar, and Dr. Adam Arnofsky.

September 10, 2019 — Patients with severe, symptomatic aortic stenosis in northern New Jersey now have more treatment options at Englewood Hospital. Last month, the US Food and Drug Administration approved the use of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) for the treatment of severe, symptomatic aortic stenosis in patients who are determined to be at low risk of complications from open-heart surgery. Previously, the procedure was reserved for high-risk and intermediate-risk patients.

The newly approved indication offers an alternative approach for treatment to a large group of patients for whom open heart surgery was the only option when medical therapy was not effective.

With FDA approval expanded to low-risk patients, the heart team at Englewood Hospital can take into account patient preference in addition to risk factors and other considerations when reviewing treatment options. Compared to open heart surgery for valve repair, the TAVR procedure is significantly less invasive with a much quicker recovery, generally allowing the patient to return home the next day.

TAVR uses balloon-expandable and self-expanding valves, delivered via a catheter into the heart, to provide the best possible outcomes for patients with heart disease. The TAVR team at Englewood Hospital, consisting of both interventional cardiologists and cardiothoracic surgeons who work together to perform the procedure, has observed a high success rate in TAVR patients, with outcomes better than the national average.

Englewood Hospital was one of the first hospitals in New Jersey to offer the procedure following its approval by the FDA in 2011. Since then, the heart valve team at Englewood has performed more than 600 TAVR procedures, becoming one of the leading centers in New Jersey.

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