OTTAWA, July 11, 2024 — The University of Ottawa Heart Institute (UOHI) successfully implanted North America's first 41-millimetre Tricvalve® Transcatheter Bicaval Valves System into an Ottawa patient last month. The UOHI is only one of three sites in Canada capable of performing the minimally invasive procedure using this advanced technology.
Dr. Marino Labinaz, the structural interventional cardiologist at the UOHI who led the procedure, said it was completed without incident on June 7, 2024, and that the patient is now recovering at home.
“This innovative therapy is especially intended for patients who are at elevated risk and not eligible for currently available transcatheter or surgical therapies,” said Dr. Labinaz. “These procedures are possible due to a true collaborative effort and numerous individuals who played an instrumental role in helping to organize the procedure. Our patient who placed their trust and faith in our team deserves the greatest credit.”
The Tricvalve® Transcatheter Bicaval Valve System is designed for the treatment of patients with severe tricuspid insufficiency, a form of valvular heart disease. Symptoms of the condition often include fatigue; swelling in the abdomen, legs and neck veins; abnormal heart rhythms; cardiac arrhythmia; and shortness of breath. When left untreated, it can often lead to heart failure or even death.
In the Tricvalve® system, two self-expanding biological valves are carefully attached inside the inferior and superior vena cava, the channel through which oxygen-poor blood is returned to the heart before being pumped into the lungs to receive oxygen. The implants function as one-way valves that direct blood flow in the proper direction.
“The University of Ottawa Heart Institute has long been at the forefront of advanced cardiac care, ensuring the most critically ill patients receive the attention and care they deserve,” said Dr. Rob Beanlands, the UOHI’s president and CEO. "This is testament not only to the expertise, skill and leadership of Dr. Labinaz and our teams, but also to their compassion, empathy, and dedication to our patients."
Additional information
The University of Ottawa Heart Institute stands as one of Canada’s most distinguished heart health centres for the unparalleled care it provides to its patients, a world-renowned research institute that brings science from bench to bedside, and the country’s main influencer when it comes to preventing heart disease. Its promise remains the very pillar on which it was built: Always putting patients first.
Media contact
Leigh B. Morris
Communications Officer
University of Ottawa Heart Institute
613-316-6409 (cell)
lmorris@ottawaheart.ca