Pioneering teams at Blackpool Teaching Hospital’s cardiac centre of excellence are celebrating a significant milestone after performing their 1000th TAVI procedure.
The TAVI team enjoy some non-alcoholic fizz to celebrate the 1000th procedure
Cardiologists at Lancashire Cardiac Centre began performing TAVI (Trans-catheter Aortic Valve Implantation) procedures in 2008 as an alternative to open heart surgery. Prior to 2008 most heart valve procedures involved a three-night stay in hospital, extensive planning, required a general anaesthetic and was restrictive in that many patients were not fit for open heart surgery.
TAVI is a day case procedure, with at most a one night stay and is performed under a local anaesthetic. We have fantastic cardiac anaesthetists who assist us and more recently we are now able to offer nurse led sedation, thanks to our excellent cardiology cath lab team.
The number of TAVIs has increased year-on-year since 2008 and in August the team performed the procedure on their 1000th patient 79-year-old Ann Clayton from Anchorsholme.
Dr Andrew Wiper, Lead TAVI Consultant and Head of Department explained why the success of the procedures has been so important: “TAVI is a lifesaving procedure for patients with a tight aortic valve, and we are able to insert a new aortic valve through the skin and all done under local anaesthetic, with the procedure taking on average an hour to perform. Left untreated – these patients have a worse prognosis than most advanced cancers.
Ann Clayton with Dr Wiper
“We are one of only a handful of UK centres doing the TAVI as a day case procedure and are considered a national pioneer in this area.
“The service was started by Dr Roberts and Dr More in 2008 and I now lead the TAVI service with my consultant colleagues Dr Roberts, Dr More, Dr Gamal, Dr Choudhury and Dr Abdelaziz.
“We have excellent TAVI nurse practitioners in Sister Kate Lee and Sister Beki Jones and an excellent TAVI co-ordinator – Collette Remmett. Our service expansion has only been possible through the huge support provided by the Trust and our tertiary divisional director – Dr Shajil Chalil.”
The TAVI team celebrated the landmark this week with a specially created cake in the shape of a new heart valve.