An Israeli company is developing a minimally invasive procedure to fix heart valve insufficiency when a replacement isn’t necessary. For patients suffering from heart valve or aortic insufficiency, the only solution currently available is open-heart surgery to replace the valve. Unfortunately, the five- to six-hour operation is too dangerous for some people, especially older adults. Only 20 percent of patients can be approved for the procedure.
If left untreated, heart valve insufficiency can lead to heart palpitations, chest pain, fatigue, shortness of breath, and, ultimately, heart failure. The five-year survival rate is just 30%.
Israeli medical device startup Cuspa Medical is aiming to treat heart valve insufficiency with a procedure similar to how a stent is inserted into the heart – via a catheter threaded through an artery that starts in the groin area.