Percutaneous Mitral Repair with the MitraClip System - Essay Example

"Percutaneous Mitral Repair with the MitraClip System" is a great example of a paper on surgery and rehabilitation. MitraClip procedure is a newly introduced procedure for patients who are having the risk of death during heart surgeries. It is an alternative for the out-dated system first introduced by surgeons of Beaumont, a hospital in Metro Detroit in 2008. It helps the patients to have a normal life without any complications and quick recovery (Beaumont Health System, 2013). The present paper provides a brief summary of how MitraClip is helpful and a better as well as much more reliable technique than any other surgery for Heart Disease. But nevertheless, it has some limitations or some critical conditions where the use of Mitral Clip can cause death.

Introduction

MitraClip is a process used to recover Mitral Valve Regurgitation (MVR). MVR is a type of heart disease when the left ventricle dysfunctions or there is a dilation which leads to damage of the heart vessel causing a heart attack. Many other related side effects may also develop as strain in the lungs, enlargement of the left atrium, etc. These were previously diagnosed by surgeons by open-heart surgery which had a huge risk of life or probable deaths in some cases. So with the introduction of the MitraClip procedure, a new era began which made heart injuries less risky. The device MitraClip is a small device that clips the mitral valve together resulting in throughout efficient flow of blood. It is also suitable for patients, who are too old or might have related diseases like liver disease, and a history of operation.

The procedure of using Mitral Clip

MitraClip is a small device made of chromium and cobalt surrounded by polyester to facilitate the easy flow of blood to the mitral valves and growth of tissues. So the MitraClips are inserted into the federal veins with the help of Fluoroscopy that suggest the surgeon regarding which way the device would enter through the venous system of the heart and then Echo-cardiograph is used to position the device in the mitral valve. After positioning the device, the device enters via the inferior vena cava to the right atrium. The surgeon moves the catheter to pass through septal walls situated in between the two atria. This enables the device to pass to the left atrium and then open MitraClips are brought near the atria. The open MitraClips then reaches the mitral valve and it is implanted in the mitral valves. The surgeon then closes the Mitral Clips and the leaflets are clipped together which gives a double oral cavity that ensures free flowing of blood and reduces valve leakage (FDA, 2014).

This procedure of Mitral Clip has cured patients who do not have that life stability to undergo open-heart surgery. It is a success in the world of science considering its potential to provide a better quality of life, healthy life, an easy flow of blood between the valves, and quick recovery after surgery (FDA, 2014).

Conditions for using the treatment

The process of Mitral Clip is used in the conditions when there are acute heart injuries and there is a risk of life owing to old age or poor health condition. Many patients having other diseases that affect heart surgery like diabetes, liver disorder, etc. that threatens life under open heart surgery are better off opting for Mitral Clip procedure. This technique is used for patients who have complex operational history earlier too.

This device is used in the case of Mitral Valve Repair. Mitral Valve Regurgitation causes the blood to flow backward causing problems in breathing and resulting heart attack. Mitral Clip can also be used on patients without any aforementioned complication but expects quick recovery or want to reduce any risk to life that might be associated with open heart surgery (FDA, 2014).

Dis-advantages and warning

Mitral Clip has some limitations and cannot be used on every type of patients. It is restricted in its use in the following ways. The device cannot be used if the patient has rheumatic mitral valve disease. Moreover the presence of blood clots inside the vessels and if the patient is using different medicines which ensure easy flow of blood then death risk after using the mitral clip rises. The use of a Mitral Clip for treatment is done by the doctors completely with the consent of the patients or their families (FDA, 2014).

Mixed responses

Mitral Clip is advantageous over all other treatment of heart injuries and some of the evidence have been taken to support the discussion that is made in the paper. Some of the papers have been taken suggesting ways of how Mitral Valve Regurgitation (MR) is cured with Mitral Clip procedure enabling an easy way of life for patients and a better way to live in the future.

1. Surder et al. (2013) have discussed the success of the use of the MitraClip procedure. The book prepares a study on 100 patients treated with the help of MitraClip for MVR where it was found that with the implementation of MitraClip the MR decreased to MR grade <- 2 +. This made MitraClip be a significant measure of survival.
2. Franzen et al. (2010) emphasized on adverse valve morphology and severe left ventricular dysfunction, they aim a test where Mitral Clip is used in case of high-surgical patients with MR more than the grade of > 3+ but less than 4. This paper showed that with the help of Mitral Clip surgery, MR value brought down to grade less than 2.

So from the above discussions, we can say that the Mitral Clip procedure has been beneficial for the patients having acute conditions and health conditions.

Conclusion

The MitraClip procedure is a catheter-based treatment. It is performed to subdue the side-effects of bypass surgeries among old people. Patients are quickly getting better after the operation causing lesser hospitalization. Mitral Clip is the most well-known invention by the American College of Cardiology in 2008. Also, it allows real-time position and re-position for optimum mitral valve decrease. One of the biggest advantages of Mitral Clip is that it cures heart injuries without bypass surgery.

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