Question:

Can the aortic and mitral valves both be replaced at the same procedure via the TAVR approach?

I had an aortic valve replacement (biologic) in 2004, and echocardiogram now shows mitral valve stenosis also. My question is can both valves be replaced at the same time with biologic valves via TAVR procedure or is open heart surgery required for this and what would prognosis be?

Submitted by Maureen from Quebec on 07/24/2015

At present, the only indicated procedure for TAVR is aortic valve replacement in high risk patients. Very rarely have both been done in high risk patients. Age and comorbidities all come into play when the decision is made. Unless the mitral stenosis is absolutely life-threatening, delaying surgery should be considered.