Transcatheter aortic valve replacement: favorable clinical outcomes support role in intermediate risk surgical patients

Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) is now widely accepted as the preferred therapy for patients with severe aortic stenosis who are either inoperable or at high risk for complications following surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) (1-4). Outcomes of up to 5 years are now available that support the use of TAVR in this population (5,6). These clinical trials used first generation TAVR devices—balloon-expandable SAPIEN (Edwards Lifesciences) and self-expandable CoreValve (Medtronic). Both devices have since undergone design iterations with improvements in procedural success and clinical outcomes (7,8). In 2015, FDA approved the commercial use of SAPIEN 3, a third generation balloon-expandable transcatheter heart valve (THV) system.