Mitral Valve Repair: Different Approaches for Different Patients (Interview with Dr. Joanna Chikwe)

https://www.Heart-Valve-Surgery.com - Patient advantages of mitral valve repair compared to mitral valve replacement include long-term durability, no required use of blood thinners, and the return to a normal life-expectancy. The "gold standard" for surgeon access to a leaking mitral valve (also known as mitral regurgitation) is a sternotomy which is an incision through the patient's chest. During the past 20 years, however, several new technologies have evolved that provide surgeons different access points that are minimally-invasive or non-invasive including robotic-assisted and transcatheter approaches (e.g. MitraClip). Watch this interview with Dr. Joanna Chikwe, Chair of Cardiac Surgery at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, to learn how she and the Cedars-Sinai heart team uses different mitral valve repair approaches for different patients based upon risk-profiles, patient preferences and clinical trials. See patient reviews and a complete surgeon biography for Dr. Chikwe at https://www.heart-valve-surgery.com/s....