Improved Transfemoral Accessibility and Positioning of the Portico Transcatheter Heart Valve With the New FlexNav Delivery System

Abstract

The new iteration of the Portico transcatheter heart valve delivery system, the FlexNav, has been designed to enhance procedural safety and accuracy of the platform. Major technological advancements were the significant reduction of the insertion profile, allowing a transfemoral access down to 5.0 mm vessels, and the addition of a stability layer, improving deployment accuracy and thus potentially reducing implantation depth and permanent pacemaker implantation rate. Published data on patients undergoing Portico transcatheter heart valve implantation with the new FlexNav delivery system confirms excellent procedural and 30-day safety profile.

Lay abstract Transcatheter aortic valve replacement, a minimally invasive alternative to surgical aortic valve replacement, has become an established treatment option for patients with severe aortic stenosis approved across the entire spectrum of risk, from patient’s ineligible for surgery to those at low risk. With the rapid spread of transcatheter aortic valve replacement to younger patients, researchers are focusing on reducing procedural adverse events rates, such as pacemaker implantation or access site-related complication, and increase procedural accuracy. The new FlexNav delivery system, employed to implant the Portico transcatheter heart valve, had recently proved its procedural safety and, with its major technological advancements encompassing a reduced insertion profile and an improved device stability during implant, may significantly reduce pacemaker implantation and access site-related complication rate.

Keywords:

• aortic stenosis
• FlexNav
• portico
• TAVR
• transfemoral access

Financial & competing interests disclosure

F Bedogni, F De Marco and N Brambilla are proctors for Abbott. The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.