PLANO, TX – On Nov. 15, The Heart Hospital Baylor Plano completed its 1,000th transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) procedure. The Heart Hospital Baylor Plano was a pioneer in the development of TAVR.
Instead of traditional open heart surgery to treat aortic stenosis or a blockage of the main heart valve, TAVR is done with no incision, only a needle stick in the leg artery. The new aortic valve is threaded through an artery at the top of the leg under X-ray guidance to the patient's heart.
- The Heart Hospital Baylor Plano was one of the first five teams to perform a TAVR procedure in the U.S. as part of the TAVR clinical trials.
- The hospital's TAVR program was among the first 100 U.S. hospitals to offer the minimally invasive option for those with severe aortic valve disease when program began in 2012.
- The team was the first in the U.S. to perform a TAVR using the transapical approach. With this approach, a replacement valve is inserted through a small incision on the lower left side of the patient's chest, under the rib cage.
Today, the hospital's TAVR program is the busiest program in North Texas, the second largest in Texas and the 15th largest program in the U.S. The Heart Hospital Baylor Plano performs almost 300 TAVR procedures annually. The Heart Hospital Baylor Plano is ranked No. 16 nationally for cardiology and heart surgery in the U.S. News & World Report's rankings announced in July.
"Reaching this milestone in such a short amount of time means we've reached a level of expertise," said Molly Szerlip, MD, medical director of the inpatient and outpatient valve service, The Heart Hospital Baylor Plano. "Some of the doctors on the medical staff were in the original trial for this technology in the U.S., and now we're the largest program in the Dallas/Fort-Worth Metroplex."
The Nov. 15 achievement's roots lie in Leipzig, Germany where The Heart Hospital Baylor Plano TAVR team began research on the TAVR procedure with their German colleagues in 2001.
TAVR remains the preferred treatment for those with aortic valve stenosis who are high surgical risks, and more recently those with an intermediate risk, providing an option beyond traditional open surgery. The Heart Hospital Baylor Plano has been a leader in the research trials that led to U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval of TAVR.
TAVR offers several potential advantages to patients when compared with traditional valve replacement surgery. The procedure time for TAVR is significantly shorter than traditional surgery, usually helping to reduce complications and speed recovery. Most patients undergoing the TAVR procedure are able to leave the hospital the same day, or the day after surgery.
"It's significant because it now lets us care for those patients who otherwise wouldn't have been able to be treated," Dr. Szerlip said. "Aortic stenosis is a potentially deadly disease, and it's predominantly in the elderly, who often are the patients at highest risk during surgery. We've shown that these elderly patients can undergo this procedure safely."
Four Baylor Scott & White Health hospitals have performed a total of more than 2,000 TAVR procedures. The hospitals, in addition to The Heart Hospital Baylor Plano, include Baylor Heart and Vascular Hospital in Dallas; Scott & White Medical Center – Temple; Baylor Heart and Vascular Services at Fort Worth (includes Baylor Heart and Vascular Hospital and Baylor Scott & White All Saints Medical Center – Fort Worth).
Notice Regarding Physician Ownership: The Heart Hospital Baylor Plano Baylor is a hospital in which physicians have an ownership or investment interest. The list of the physician owners or investors is available to you upon request. Physicians provide clinical services as members of the medical staff at one of Baylor Scott & White Health's subsidiary, community or affiliated medical centers and are neither employees nor agents of those medical centers, Baylor Health Care System, Scott & White Healthcare or Baylor Scott & White Health.
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About Baylor Scott & White Health
As the largest not-for-profit health system in the state of Texas, Baylor Scott & White promotes the health and well-being of every individual, family and community it serves. It is committed to making quality care more accessible, convenient and affordable through its integrated delivery network, which includes the Baylor Scott & White Health Plan, Baylor Scott & White Research Institute, the Baylor Scott & White Quality Alliance and its leading digital health platform – MyBSWHealth. Through 51 hospitals and more than 1,200 access points, including flagship academic medical centers in Dallas, Fort Worth and Temple, the system offers the full continuum of care, from primary to award-winning specialty care. Founded as a Christian ministry of healing more than a century ago, Baylor Scott & White today serves more than three million Texans. For more information, visit: BSWHealth.com
