Aortic stenosis (when the heart’s aortic valve doesn’t fully open) has a pretty high mortality rate — at one year there is a 50 percent chance of dying, so these patients were left hopeless,” says William Suh, MD, an interventional cardiologist at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center. “But TAVR, or transcatheter aortic valve replacement, is now a hopeful procedure for them. They can get the procedure and actually look forward to living longer and having a better quality of life. In 2012, I took it upon myself to start something new and we started the TAVR program. Now the program is thriving. We’re doing approximately 100 TAVR cases per year. The patients are very excited. They’re amazed that a few hours after their procedure they already feel an improvement. They love it.”

Tags: aortic stenosis, aortic valve, Cardiology, Dr. William Suh, heart health, Heart Month, interventional cardiologist, patient stories, TAVR, TAVR program, transcatheter aortic valve replacement