Shifa performs first-ever aortic valve replacement

Islamabad: The Cardiology team at Shifa international Hospital (SIH) has performed the first-ever Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation (TAVI) procedure in Islamabad on an elderly patient suffering from critical heart condition.

TAVI has emerged as a major breakthrough in the field of interventional cardiology and is now recognized as an alternative for standard valve replacement surgery in selected high-risk patients. The procedure was performed by a team led by consultant interventional cardiologist Dr. Asaad A. Khan, who has experience of performing more than 500 TAVI procedures in the United States.

Previously, patients needing aortic valve replacement had to undergo open heart surgery. However, with this new interventional procedure, heart valves can be replaced through a very small opening in the groin.