The structural heart disease team at Hackensack Meridian Jersey Shore University Medical Center is now providing procedures repairing patients’ tricuspid heart valves, utilizing first-of-their-kind treatment devices.
Treatment for leaking tricuspid valves, known as tricuspid regurgitation or TR, has previously been limited to medication therapy or open-heart surgery depending on the severity of regurgitation. The heart experts are implanting the novel devices TriClip transcatheter edge-to-edge repair system or the EVOQUE transcatheter tricuspid valve replacement system.
TR is a condition in which the valve between the two right heart chambers (right ventricle and right atrium) don’t close properly, allowing blood to flow backward into the right atrium of the heart. Traditionally, the only treatment options for TR have been surgery, which is rarely performed due to the complexity of the procedure and high risks involved, and medical therapy, which is usually unsuccessful in reducing TR. The new devices provide a much-needed treatment option for people suffering from this condition.
“As one of New Jersey’s leading providers of cardiovascular care, I’m extremely happy that we are able to provide our community with the latest, most advanced heart care techniques, from world-class experts,” Jersey Shore Chief Hospital Executive Vito Buccellato said.
The repair systems are delivered minimally invasively to the heart via a catheter inserted through the femoral vein in the leg. Designed specifically for the right side of the heart and the tricuspid valve’s complex anatomy, this minimally invasive approach allows the heart to pump blood more efficiently and relieve symptoms of TR, which improves the quality of life for patients.
Hackensack Meridian’s comprehensive cardiovascular services leader in northern New Jersey Hackensack University Medical Center – Structural and Congenital Heart team participated in TriClip and EVOQUE device trials and as a result, were early adopters of the procedures.
“Leading-edge structural, interventional, and diagnostic heart and vascular procedures are now provided in Jersey Shore’s new technologically advanced cardiovascular services suite, which opened this past December,” HMH Southern Market President Kenneth Sable said. “It’s an ideal practice space for our expert cardiologists, nurses, and other staff, and a centralized, convenient environment for our patients and their families.”
The $45 million suite features four dedicated cardiac catheterization labs, four electrophysiology labs, and two hybrid operating rooms, a radial lounge, as well as a 28-bay patient prep and recovery and short stay area, nearly tripling Jersey Shore’s former cardiovascular patient capacity.
