In mid 2012, Cardiologists and Heart Surgeons at JFK Medical Center began offering the transcatheter aortic valve replacement procedure (TAVR) with the Edwards SAPIEN Valve. JFK Medical Center was selected as one of the first hospitals in the United States to offer this treatment to patients, following FDA approval for commercial use in November 2011. This new way to perform heart valve replacement enables the placement of a collapsible aortic heart valve into the body via a catheter that is inserted through the leg, and threaded up to the heart. JFK Medical Center is the first Heart program in Palm Beach and the Treasure Coast to offer this non-surgical therapy outside a research study.
The TAVR procedure is currently only approved for people with life threatening valvular disease, and are not surgical candidates. Because of its curative nature, the TAVR procedure represents a major advance for inoperable patients. In other words, patients who would have otherwise had no surgical options now have a way to cure their valve disease.
At JFK Medical Center, the TAVR procedure is performed by a team of exceptional physicians. This team consists of: Cardiovascular Surgeons: Dr. Marcos Nores, Dr. Lance Lester, Anesthesiologist: Dr. Arvind Kapila and Inverventional Cardiologists: Dr. Robert Cubeddu, Dr. Lawrence Lovitz, and Dr. Mark Rothenberg.
The TAVR procedure is performed in a Hybrid Cardiac Operating Suite. This Hybrid OR allows for advanced procedures utilizing cardiac catheterization equipment combined with the amenities of a full service operating room. Cardiologists and cardiac surgeons make up the multidisciplinary team who perform these procedures.
Unlike the traditional open heart surgery, TAVR patients require a leg incision through which a catheter is passed. Patients do not require the use of a bypass machine and recovery is typically one to three days in the hospital. Once home, patients are able to get around better than before the procedure. More recently JFK has also launched the transapical TAVR program since its FDA approval in November 2012.
Since the program’s inception JFK Medical Center has actively screened and identified potential candidates for the TAVR procedure through our HCA network, The South Florida Valve Institute. The South Florida Valve Institute is comprised of HCA hospitals: JFK Medical Center, Aventura Hospital and Medical Center, Northwest Medical Center and Westside Regional Medical Center.
