Aortic stenosis consists, according to specialists in Cardiac Surgery, in an obstruction of the aortic valve and in severe cases it can cause sudden death. The only treatment for aortic stenosis is to eliminate the obstruction of the valve, and to do so the valve is replaced with different techniques:
- Classical technique: surgical and involves heart arrest.
- Minimally invasive surgery technique: performed through small incisions.
The TAVI technique
The technique called TAVI has been a revolution in the treatment of this disease, since the valve is not replaced, but another one is implanted inside the native stenotic valve through a catheter.
This technique appeared when it was discovered that there was a high rate of patients who could not be operated by traditional surgery, i.e., with cardiac arrest and extracorporeal circulation, were rejected due to a high risk of complications. With the TAVI technique, it is not necessary to stop the heart; instead, a valve is implanted directly into the patient’s native valve through the femoral artery, subclavian artery or aorta.
This has been a great advance for the elderly and for people at high risk for conventional surgery. Over the years, this disease can cause dyspnea, chest pain and, if very severe, acute pulmonary edema or sudden death in the patient, but both surgery and the TAV technique.