Aster Medcity Performs Kerala’s First Harmony Valve Implantation on the Youngest Ever Patient in India

KOCHI:
Aster Medcity performs Kerala’s first Transcatheter implantation of Harmony Valve in a 16-year-old. The young boy hailing from Kottayam is a plus one student and had already undergone surgery in infancy for a condition called Tetralogy of Fallot (TOF). Tetralogy of Fallot is a birth defect that results in a blue baby syndrome due to the mixing of pure and impure blood in the heart.

The primary surgery is a lifesaving procedure but leaves behind a leak in a Valve known as pulmonary regurgitation which eventually causes the right-sided chambers to dilate affecting its function. This is a bane faced by many GUCH (grown-up congenital heart disease) patients after correction of TOF.

Most GUCH patients may have reached significant level of right ventricular dilatation which may be a deterrent to transcatheter valve placement especially due to the valve designs that are currently available in India. The new Harmony Valve is specially made for such difficult cases and helps avoid the risks associated with open-heart surgery for valve placement. It is only a single-day procedure after which patient can go home and can do all routine activities.

The Valve was specially imported from the United States for the treatment of his condition, marking a significant milestone in medical innovation of the state. A special team from the US along with Dr Edwin Francis-Director &Senior Consultant, Aster Medcity -Kochi was behind the success of the procedure.

“Until recently, valve replacement surgeries were the primary option available in such difficult cases. But since he was a high-risk case with dilated heart, this minimally invasive technique offered a safer alternative. This will instil hope for many Grown Up and adult patients previously deemed unsuitable for transcatheter treatment,” said Dr. Edwin Francis- Director &Senior Consultant, Aster Medcity -Kochi.