St. Francis Heart Center Performs First Use Of New Heart Valve Tool

St. Francis Hospital & Heart Center®, New York State’s only specialty designated cardiac center, has performed the world’s first heart valve procedure using the new TELLTALE electrosurgical guidewire system to assist in the placement of Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement (TAVR). 
 
The history-making first in-human procedure was performed at St. Francis Hospital by Jaffar Khan, MD, innovator of the BASILICA procedure, with George Petrossian, MD, and Newell Robinson, MD, co-chairs of St. Francis Hospital’s structural heart program. 
 
“Using the TELLTALE device, we were able to successfully treat a patient who was at high risk of TAVR-induced coronary obstruction,” commented Dr. Khan. “We were able to cut the diseased valve leaflet out of the way within minutes, allowing for safe and effective implantation of the TAVR valve. Bringing this therapy to Long Island reflects a very positive collaborative effort between the physicians here at St. Francis, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), MedStar Washington Hospital Center and Emory University Hospital. Ultimately, it’s our patients who will reap the benefits.” 
 
This particular patient, Maria Stieglitz, age 77 of Sea Cliff, New York, says the entire experience could not have gone better. “There was no pain of any kind. And the doctors and nurses of St. Francis Hospital are fantastic. They took the time to carefully explain the procedure and answer all my questions. Everyone has been so supportive and caring. I felt like I was staying at a first-class hotel!”
 
Stieglitz was the first to be enrolled in an Investigative Device Exemption (IDE) Pivotal Trial sponsored by The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI), part of the NIH. She was back to taking walks with her dog Mollie and tending to her garden within days of the procedure.
 
St. Francis Hospital & Heart Center® performs more TAVRs than any other hospital on Long Island. This first use of the TELLTALE system reflects a new milestone in the advancement of structural heart therapy.
 
“When TAVR was first launched as a new therapy it was seen as a solution for patients too frail to endure open heart surgery,” said St. Francis Hospital President Charles Lucore, MD, MBA. “Now we are using TAVR for younger patients, expanding the volume of this minimally invasive procedure. Our successful use of the TELLTALE electrosurgical guidewire system means that we can treat more heart valve patients with minimally invasive solutions.”

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