Lansing’s Sparrow First Hospital in U.S. to Implant New Heart Valve

Sparrow in Lansing has become the first hospital in the U.S. to successfully implant an aortic valve replacement aimed at reducing leakage around the heart.
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Navitor transcatheter aortic valve
The Navitor transcatheter aortic valve was used for the first time in the U.S. at Lansing’s Sparrow. // Photo courtesy of Sparrow

Sparrow in Lansing has become the first hospital in the U.S. to successfully implant an aortic valve replacement aimed at reducing leakage around the heart.

The Navitor transcatheter aortic valve, developed by Illinois-based Abbott, is inserted through a catheter via an artery in the top of the leg to replace the old valve. The process allows for a quicker patient recovery.

The structural heart team at Sparrow – Dr. Gaurav Dhar, Dr. Nam Cho, and Dr. Hisham Qandeel – recently performed the procedure on a high-risk patient who recovered and was discharged the following day.

Sparrow is the only site in Michigan that’s part of a nationwide clinical trial in which the valve is being studied.

“Participating in the clinical trial to evaluate the Navitor valve has allowed Sparrow to make cutting-edge technology available to the people of Michigan,” says Dhar, an interventional cardiologist. “We are honored to be the first to enroll in this important trial.”

TAVR is a minimally invasive alternative to surgical aortic valve replacement for patients who are diagnosed with severe aortic stenosis – a common and serious valve disease that restricts blood flow through the valve. More than one in eight people ages 75 and older have moderate or severe aortic stenosis, which is caused by a narrowing of the aortic valve opening in the heart that restricts blood flow from the left ventricle to the aorta.

Sparrow is a member of the Mayo Clinic Care Network and has hospitals in Lansing, Charlotte, St. Johns, Ionia, and Carson City.