Missoula hospital in heart study
MISSOULA – St. Patrick Hospital has been participating in a nationwide study involving a new treatment for those who suffer from a specific heart condition.
The hospital’s International Heart Institute is one of some 40 hospitals in the U.S. and Canada that have been selected for the study. Other hospitals include Duke University Medical Center and Columbia University Medical Center.
The study involves people who suffer from mitral regurgitation, a disorder caused by a malfunctioning mitral valve. It can cause fatigue and shortness of breath.
For some, the standard mitral valve repair or replacement surgery is too risky. The study is focused on a device called MitraClip, which can be attached to the mitral valve in a nonsurgical procedure. Because the procedure is minimally invasive, recovery time can be quick.
Manufactured by Evalve, the clip is in the second phase of the FDA’s approval process.
The study compares the safety and effectiveness of the clip to surgical options for moderate to severe mitral regurgitation.
More than 450 people will receive the clip by the end of the study, and a little more than half have had the procedure. So far, three have been performed in Missoula.
Experts say preliminary results show that a majority of patients see significant reductions in their symptoms. There have been a few documented cases of the clip partially detaching, but no cases where it has completely detached.
The study is expected to last another year and FDA approval of the MitraClip could come in about three years if there are no major problems.
Claude Chadwick, 81, underwent the procedure July 23 at St. Patrick’s. He says the results were dramatic.
“The next morning I was up walking around,” Chadwick said. “You’re back on your feet in 24 hours. It’s amazing.”
Before receiving the clip, Chadwick had been on four liters of oxygen, but he isn’t using any now.
“When he came in his enjoyable life span was over,” said Dr. Matt Maxwell, a heart surgeon who evaluated Chadwick. “This is new life for him.”