The Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) and European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery (EACTS) are recommending “caution” to patients, surgeons and interventionalists before adopting transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) as the first option for low-risk patients who need a new aortic valve.
New results from two major clinical trials suggested TAVR is a safe and effective alternative to surgery in patients at low risk for surgical complications. The safety and durability of TAVR is supported by four-year outcomes from the Evolut Low-Risk trial comparing Medtronic’s CoreValve TAVR systems to surgical aortic valve replacement in low-risk patients. Also, five-year results from the PARTNER 3 trial showed similar durability for Edwards Lifesciences’ Sapien 3 or Sapien 3 Ultra TAVR system in low-risk patients