BETHLEHEM, Pa. — St. Luke’s University Health Network has become one of the first medical centers in Pennsylvania to use the newly developed ShortCut™ device, a technology designed to make certain high-risk heart-valve procedures safer for patients with complex anatomy.
The device was used during a valve-in-valve transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) in a patient with a previously implanted bioprosthetic aortic valve. The minimally invasive procedure was performed by Christopher Sarnoski, DO, Section Chief of Interventional Cardiology and Medical Director of Structural Heart Disease, and Jose Amortegui, MD, Chief of Cardiac Surgery.
“This device represents a major step forward in protecting patients with complex anatomy. It allows us to safely treat individuals who previously had no good options often involving redo open heart surgery,” said Dr. Amortegui.
Valve-in-valve TAVR is typically performed when an earlier surgical valve begins to fail. But for patients with low coronary height — where the coronary arteries sit close to the valve — standard valve-in-valve procedures can be dangerous. Implanting a new valve inside the old one may push the old leaflet upward and block blood flow to the coronary arteries, a potentially life-threatening complication.
The ShortCut™ device addresses this problem by precisely splitting the old valve’s leaflet before the new valve is implanted. This technique helps prevent coronary obstruction and makes treatment possible for patients who otherwise might require repeat open-heart surgery.
“Before ShortCut™, the only other options for these high-risk patients were a redo sternotomy, which carries significantly higher surgical risk, or placing stents in a snorkel fashion out into the aorta, which further limits repeat coronary procedures,” said Dr. Sarnoski. “ShortCut™ provides a safer and more durable solution for many of these complex cases.”
Experts estimate that by 2035, more than 40,000 valve-in-valve procedures will be performed annually in the United States, with many cases expected to benefit from leaflet-modification technologies like ShortCut™.
More information about St. Luke’s heart-valve program is available at sluhn.org/heart.
