Heart :: First keyhole heart valve surgery in UK

First keyhole heart valve surgery on an 89-year-old woman to replace a heart valve would be performed by Doctors at Leicester’s Glenfield Hospital, Leicester UK on Tuesday.

In the new heart surgery technique, heart valves are implanted using a catheter inserted into an artery in the groin, avoiding the need for open heart surgery. This heart surgery procedure has been developed to treat elderly patients who are not fit for major surgery.

Jan Kovac, consultant cardiologist at the Leicester’s Glenfield Hospital, said the procedure was the biggest invention in cardiology over the past 30 years since the introduction of coronary angioplasty – a similar keyhole operation to unblock clogged arteries.

The new catheter treatment is quicker, avoiding the need to cut the breastbone and stop the heart. Doctors have previously carried out the procedure at hospitals in Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands and Canada.