Professor Park Seung-jung of the Department of Cardiology, Professor Choo Suk-jung of the Department of Thoracic & Cardiovascular Surgery, and Professor Park Duk-woo and Professor Ahn Jung-min of the Department of Cardiology (from the right) performing the 300th TAVI on January 17.

A surgery team led by Professor Park Seung-jung of the Department of Cardiology performed the 300th transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) on January 17, the first TAVI achievement witnessed in seven years since the first success in TAVI using a stent on a severe aortic stenosis patient in March 2010. The 300th procedure was performed in a hybrid surgery room while Professor Park Seung-jung, Professor Park Duk-woo, and Professor Ahn Jung-min of the Department of Cardiology and Professor Choo Suk-jung of the Department of Thoracic & Cardiovascular Surgery were present.

Aortic stenosis (AS) is a narrowing of the aortic valve opening, restricting the blood flow from the left ventricle to the aorta. It results in angina, exertional syncope, and heart failure. If severe AS accompanied with symptoms is not treated, the one-year mortality rate reaches 50%.

TAVI is a procedure in which a balloon is inserted through the blood vessel from the femoral region to the valve and is placed between the narrowed valves and inflated. A stent that acts as the valve is then fixed. The procedure takes around 30 minutes to complete and requires a mere three-day hospital stay. Therefore, this approach is suitable for elderly patients at risk for open heart surgery and is effective in patients with high surgical risk.

According to the statistics of the 300 TAVIs performed in AMC, the average age of the patients was 78.4 years, and the success rate was 96.3%. The procedures performed in 2016 boast a 98% success rate. The first patient who received a TAVI in Korea in 2010 (now 91 years old) is leading a healthy life.

Professor Park Seung-jung said, “Aortic stenosis (AS) is expected to greatly increase in Korea, as we are an aging society. Therefore, AMC will provide patient-centric treatment based on thorough verification through a systematic collaboration between the Departments of Cardiology and Thoracic & Cardiovascular surgery and anticipates excellent outcomes following the introduction of the latest stents to be used properly by considering each patient’s conditions. As the procedure is covered by health insurance, more patients will be able to afford this treatment without much burden.”