Minimally Invasive Therapy Now Approved and Available at Holy Cross Hospital to Treat Select Patients with Significant Mitral R

Minimally Invasive Therapy Now Approved and Available at Holy Cross Hospital to Treat Select Patients with Significant Mitral Regurgitation (MR)

The Interventional Cardiology team at Holy Cross Hospital can now treat patients with significant mitral regurgitation, or a leaky heart valve, using Abbott’s minimally invasive MitraClip™ device.

“As an interventional cardiologist and structural heart trained specialist, I am excited to be part of the team offering a novel and cutting-edge therapy for Holy Cross patients with significant mitral regurgitation who, to date, have had to rely on medications or open heart surgery," said Felipe Albuquerque, MD. "We look forward to helping many patients who have significant MR and are considered high risk for open heart surgery with this minimally invasive therapy."

Mitral regurgitation occurs when the left chamber of the heart becomes enlarged, preventing its two leaflets from closing or when there is a significant defect in the valve such as a severe prolapse leading to a significant mitral regurgitation. Significant MR is difficult to manage, is associated with a poor prognosis and can lead to reduced quality of life, recurrent hospitalizations and decreased survival. Patients with MR are often not eligible for surgery because of advanced age, frailty, multiple comorbidities or other complicating factors, and the MitraClip™ therapy offers a minimally invasive alternative.

“I couldn't walk, couldn't breathe," said Valentine Steele, 79, of Fort Lauderdale, who had a previous bypass surgery. "I was lying in bed for 14 to 16 hours a day. That's no way to live. "This has been a godsend," Steele added of the MitraClip™ device. "It's been much easier than I thought it would be. I've got a new lease on life."

About the MitraClip Device


Delivered through a minimally invasive catheter, Abbott’s MitraClip secures a portion of the leaflets of the mitral valve with an implanted clip, allowing the heart to pump blood more efficiently throughout the body, thereby relieving the symptoms of severe MR and improving patient quality of life. The transcatheter clip-based therapy, now on a fourth generation of product innovations, has been used to treat more than 100,000 patients worldwide.

For Important Safety Information about MitraClip, visit https://www.structuralheartsolutions.com/us/mitraclip-isi.